Blog

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

Drama has dominated Israeli politics going back to ancient times, when the Jewish nation experienced seasons with good kings, bad kings, and no kings. Its political baggage is packed full of successes, failures, prosperity, disaster, peace, war, unity, betrayal, and even death.   

Israel’s political dramas persist today, following four elections since 2019 and, at this writing, a possible fifth looming. Any Israeli governing coalition can easily fail in just a few short weeks and months due to the nation’s political structure. Israel’s challenge of multiple political parties, posturing, and disputes unroll while Iranian leaders ramp up their terrorist plots and fanatical ambitions to dominate not only the Middle East but the rest of the world. That includes the United States—in Iran’s words, the “Great Satan.” 

Pro-Israel Christians are alarmed by the current political drama taking place in Israel. Yet this present situation raises serious questions as to how non-Israeli Christians should support Israel during this uncertain time. How do we navigate what goes on internally within Israel? What is our role to play in Israeli politics? And do we even have one?

The primary role of Christians is first and foremost to lay a foundation of prayer for the nation of Israel and its entire population: Jews, Israeli Arabs, Palestinian Arabs, Muslims, Christians, Palestinian Christians, and Druze. However, our prayers must also be followed up with action. We are called to advocate for Israel in our own United States Congress, to oppose anti-Semitism, and to send tangible relief to bless Israel and her people in need. Above all, we must trust God’s promises and provisions—especially since He is the one who reawakened the Jewish homeland into a modern Jewish state. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will fulfill His promises.  

For some background, though, let’s look at these four areas: God’s unending patience, His warnings proven true, the consequences He allowed as teachable moments, and His continual promise-keeping. 

What does the Bible, the most authoritative and popular book in world history, affirm? We do not have to look far to read about Israel’s governmental issues. God first chose Abraham and committed to shaping him and his Jewish generations into a nation that would be a light to the world with redemption and innovative blessings beyond comprehension. God Himself promised to be their King until the Israelites eventually demanded a king through the prophet Samuel. 

Once men took on the mantle of kingship over Israel, the chronicles and stories went sideways. In first person, the prophet Samuel recounts part of the story in 1 Samuel 8:1-9. Samuel was old, his sons were not fit to lead, and his elders visited Samuel to lobby him. In verse 5 they pleaded, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.” Samuel was not pleased and prayerfully consulted God. God assured Samuel that his elders were not rejecting him but rejecting God Himself. In verses 8 and 9, God goes on to say, “According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day—with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also. Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.” 

God knew that kings would rule imperfectly. He knew full well that the Israelites’ preferences were going to return to haunt them. Their insistence on their own way is a clear example for us—and all humanity—of our weakness and arrogance in thinking that we are in charge. Even so, God has not rejected Israel, the Jewish people, or those of us who are grafted into the family through the sacrificial blood of our Jewish Messiah. 

Tall, handsome Saul had his chance as the first King to reign. Jealousy, insecurity, and rage consumed him. He then died a terrible death. Along came David, a beloved king, a magnificent musician, and psalmist. The psalms are vehicles of praise, sorrow, majesty, and agony that bless us still. Yet David was also an adulterer who ordered a hit man to murder Bathsheba’s husband. 

Solomon, the developer king and architect of the First Temple, likewise filled the book of Proverbs with wise sayings. We read them today for guidance. Nevertheless, he himself did not act wisely. Later in life, he listened to his many wives and built altars to their gods. The books of 1 and 2 Kings are sad commentaries about the evil kings of Israel’s 10 northern tribes. King Ahab, in particular, was considered the worst king in Jewish history. When he married Jezebel, he aligned with pagan worship, which led to building an altar to Baal. And the southern and northern kingdom rivalries dominated Israel’s political landscape.  

Several examples of Israel’s clashes appear in 1 and 2 Kings:

“Now there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days” (1 Kings 15:16).

“And Zimri went in and struck him and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place” (1 Kings 16:10).

“For he rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; he raised up altars for Baal, and made a wooden image, as Ahab king of Israel had done; and he worshiped all the host of heaven and served them” (2 Kings 21:3).

Today, infighting between Jewish groups continues to rage even while the world’s only Jewish nation faces unrelenting threats of war, terrorism, and hostility. The political strife continues even as a rising tide of anti-Semitism sweeps the globe and the world singles out Israel for condemnation, boycott, divestment, and sanctions. No group or nation is immune from infighting and strife, of course—including Christian groups—but we pray for our Jewish friends in Israel as well as all of Israeli society that God would bring peace to the storm and a unified solidarity that will make Israel strong not only to defend itself but also to be a light to the nations.   

In closing, I want to highlight important biblical truths to direct our thinking and to trust God’s sovereignty when it comes to Israel and our role as believers. Despite the wonders and tragedies of Israel’s history, Isaiah 43:1-4 still holds true and in part says, “But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place. Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honored, and I have loved you; therefore I will give men for you, and people for your life.” While we must pray, act, and give our support to Israel, we must remember that it is God who saves, not us. 

The New Testament reiterates God’s unconditional plans in the brilliant Jewish Apostle Paul’s writing in Romans 9:3-5 under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration: “For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.”

No matter who fills the role of Israel’s prime minister or who joins him in governing the nation, we are called by God to stand with the Jewish state and to bless His chosen people. May we trust in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—the King of Kings—to fulfill His plans and promises concerning Israel. 

Please join CBN Israel this week as we pray for Israel amid the current political turmoil:

• Pray with thanks that Israel is a parliamentary democracy.
• Pray that Israel’s political strife and division will move into unity and solidarity.
• Pray that the Christian community will rightly understand our role and trust the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 
• Pray that, despite Israel’s political turmoil, their military will keep successfully maintaining the safety of their nation. 
• Pray for Israel’s leaders—president, prime minister, Knesset and judiciary—for wisdom and right decisions. 

May we remember Amos 9:15, where God makes His intentions toward the people of Israel abundantly clear: “I will plant them in their land, and no longer shall they be pulled up from the land I have given them.”

Scriptures taken from the New King James Version.

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 now an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel 25 times. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited by Artist Pat Mercer Hutchens and sits 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.

“I was seven when we were forced by the Nazis into the ghetto,” Lisa recalled sadly. “Food was very hard to come by, and you’d wake up not knowing if you’d have anything to eat that day. Then each evening, we’d see carts going down the road—filled with the bodies of those who starved to death.” As a little girl, it was a terrifying image she would never forget.

Today, Lisa is a Holocaust survivor living in Israel. During this past year, the COVID-19 lockdowns and forced isolation caused those haunting memories of the Ukrainian ghetto to resurface. 

Lisa still remembers the constant, gnawing hunger—a trauma shared by many Holocaust survivors. Even when restrictions began to lift, she still suffered anxiety that she wouldn’t be able to go grocery shopping, due to her age and risk of catching COVID-19. 

But friends like you were there for her, through CBN Israel. We brought her food and supplies—making sure she was cared for while taking precautions to keep her safe. “It’s amazing that you would want to do this for me. It helps put my mind at ease, and I’m so grateful for it,” Lisa exclaimed. “It means everything to know that you remember us. May God bless you!” 

Your gift to CBN Israel can reach out with groceries and essentials to many other Holocaust survivors, single moms, refugees, immigrant families, and more. You can let them know that they are not alone.

And your support can bring humanitarian aid to those in crisis—while also broadcasting CBN News reports from the Holy Land and producing documentary films that share Israel’s untold stories. Help us bless this special land!

GIVE TODAY

By Marc Turnage

The discovery at Qumran of the first seven Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 required a suitable place to house them. The American Jewish architects Armand Bartos and Frederic Kiesler were tasked with designing a home for the scrolls at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. On April 20, 1965, the Shrine of the Book was dedicated. 

This landmark of modern architecture incorporated elements of the story of the scrolls as well as the community responsible for them to create a special building that symbolized a sanctuary. The architecture of the building seeks to convey the spiritual meanings of light and darkness and rebirth. The Shrine of the Book sits on the campus of the Israel Museum, which is next to Israel’s Parliament, the Knesset, key government offices, and the Jewish National Library at the Hebrew University’s Giv’at Ram campus. Its location among institutions of government, history, art, and learning, give it a national importance. Moreover, it acknowledges the Bible and ancient Judaism and their importance to the State of Israel. 

The buildings architecture incorporates several features that seek to tell the story of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls. The unique white dome of the Shrine of the Book embodies the lid of the jars in which the first scrolls were found. Opposite the whited dome, under which is housed the Dead Sea Scrolls, stands a black wall. The contrast, white and black, symbolize light and darkness two themes that play prominently within the sectarian scrolls of the Dead Sea Scrolls. 

One must walk through the black wall to make your way to where the scrolls are housed under the white dome, passing through a tunnel that looks like a cave, but also symbolizes a birthing canal. The idea being that one passes from darkness to light in an act of rebirth. Cases line the walls of this tunnel with scroll fragments and other artifacts discovered at the site of Qumran, which sits on the northwest corner of the Dead Sea. This display seeks to convey daily life at Qumran. 

Passing through the tunnel, one enters underneath the white dome. At the center of the hall, in a case built to represent the handle of the rod used for rolling and unrolling a Torah scroll while one reads, sits a facsimile of the Isaiah Scroll. This scroll, found in Cave 1 at Qumran, contains the complete book of Isaiah. The manuscript of this scroll was written around 100 B.C. In cases around the room are portions of actual Dead Sea Scrolls, the Community Rule, Thanksgiving Hymns, Habakkuk Commentary, and Isaiah from Cave 1, and the Temple Scroll from Cave 11. 

Below the display of the Isaiah Scroll is a lower level that houses a display of the Aleppo Codex. The Aleppo Codex was originally written in Tiberias, Israel in the 10^th century A.D. The Aleppo Codex is the Old Testament-Hebrew Bible in book form. Prior to the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, it provided the earliest Hebrew text of the Old Testament. Its text contains traditions of pronunciation, spelling, punctuation, and cantillation handed down within the Jewish community and formalized in the codex by scholars known as “Masoretes.” The Aleppo Codex traveled from Tiberias to Egypt, and then later to Aleppo, Syria. It was smuggled into Israel in the 1950s. 

The Dead Sea Scrolls provide the single most important archaeological discovery of the 20^th century. They offer an unparalleled window into the world of ancient Judaism, as well as the history and transmission of the Hebrew Bible-Old Testament.

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

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

Older Americans will recall the panic when polio struck their children, either crippling them or resulting in their deaths. In 1952, 58,000 new cases broke out in the United States and more than 3,000 children died. Polio dominated the minds of fearful parents. Enter Dr. Jonas Salk, who in 1953 announced a vaccine for the dreaded poliomyelitis. 

When the vaccine became widely available, Dr. Salk was called a “miracle worker.” At the time, Dr. Salk was director of the Virus Research Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Salk, who later received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, was Jewish—a first-generation American. 

As a Jewish medical pioneer, Dr. Salk is not alone. In fact, his medical breakthrough is accompanied by outsized Jewish innovations in all five of the Nobel Prize categories including Physics, Chemistry, Physiology/Medicine, Literature, and Peace. Between 1901 and 2020, 228 Jews have been awarded Nobel Prizes out of more than 900 in the world. That is 25 percent of prizes. In the U.S. alone, with a 2 percent Jewish citizenry, Jews account for 40 percent of Nobels awarded in science and health.

In his 1895 will, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel codified the award: “to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind.” Certainly, the Jewish community’s shining stars of innovation qualify. 

In his book, The Super Achievers, Ronald Gerstl offers impressive statistics about Jewish Nobel Prize winners in science and health. Of the planet’s roughly 7.9 billion people, 24% of all Nobel prizes in science and medicine have been bestowed on Jews. It is frankly astonishing to realize the worldwide Jewish population is only around 14 million. It is estimated that their combined discoveries have saved 2.8 billion lives. 

That includes Abel Wolman, pioneer of modern sanitary engineering, who worked for the Maryland State Health Department in the early 1900s. He helped perfect water purification by experimenting with chlorine. Typhoid cases fell by 92% and untreated drinking water dropped to practically zero. Advising countries worldwide, Wolman and his chlorination process brought safe drinking water to many millions. 

How can we explain the innovative triumphs within the Jewish community? For Christians we refer to the Bible, which establishes God’s designation of the Jews as His chosen people. After all, God chose Jewish scribes to transmit His words to the world. Yet God gave us even more than written words. He gave us Jesus, our Jewish Savior, the Word, the Living Torah. John describes Him in his Gospel (chapter 1:1): “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” 

God called Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their descendants—the Jewish people—to serve as a light to the nations and to be a blessing to the rest of the world. In modern day Jewish culture, this core value is both taught and practiced as the concept of Tikun Olam, which is Hebrew for “repairing the world.” Joining with God in bring healing and repair to the world is woven into the Jewish identity and ethos. It is their mission as a people and as a nation. 

Understanding the above concept may help explain how Israel’s Jewish medical community is willing to admit and treat Palestinian and Hamas leaders and family members in their hospitals. Examples of such humanity abound. Here are a few. 

In 2014, when Israel was forced to defend its citizens from 10,000 rockets during Operation Cast Lead, the daughter of Hamas terrorist leader Ismail Haniyeh was treated at Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital, as were his mother-in-law and granddaughter. During last month’s barrage of thousands of rockets on Israeli civilians, Haniyeh’s niece was treated for a bone marrow transplant while hospitalized in Tel Aviv. 

Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem from 1994 to 2006, voiced his unabashed hatred toward Jews for years in his sermons on the Jewish Temple Mount. One of his frequent slanderous remarks was, “But we know the Jew is planning on destroying the Haram [Al-Aqsa Mosque]. The Jew will get the Christian to do his work for him. This is the way of the Jews. This is the way Satan manifests himself.” Yet, when Sabri needed heart surgery, he wanted it performed at “Zionist-run” Hadassah Hospital. After Jewish doctors saved his life, he returned to spewing hatred and incitement. Israel’s foes worldwide might want to wonder why Sabri trusted the Jewish doctors not to murder him on the surgery table. He is still alive.

And a final example: Israeli hospitals have treated Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas and his wife several times. All the while, his Palestinian media keeps promoting lies. Palestinian Media Watch, which monitors and translates Palestinian media reported on PA TV, “Member of Parliament Naftali Bennett, head of the Yemina party and self-declared candidate for prime minister, is doing to the Palestinians what ‘Eichmann did to the Jews of Austria.’” (Adolph Eichmann, of course, was one of the masterminds of Nazi genocide.) Abbas could shut this down immediately since he is a dictator. 

In one of the clearest possible differences between humanitarian Israel and hate-filled terrorists, Hamas sent a young Palestinian woman, Wafa Samir Ibrahim Bas, to Soroka Hospital in Beersheva, Israel, in 2005 for lifesaving treatments. They armed her, hiding 20 pounds of explosives in her clothing. Her goal was not to get well but to die while murdering the doctors treating her. Thankfully, she was apprehended at the Erez Crossing and later sentenced to 12 years in prison in a compassionate move based on her being forced to carry out a terrorist act. 

Saying that Palestinian leaders are not grateful for Israeli cures and surgeries is an understatement. Nor are they grateful for convoys of semis filled with humanitarian aid even when Israel is under fire. Not only is gratitude missing in action, but hypocrisy is rampant. The elite are treated in Israeli hospitals—along with many ordinary Palestinians—yet the leadership’s neglect of its Palestinian populations is a result of misused monies to improve their lives.  

We live in an Isaiah 5:20 world: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” 

Yet, Israel forges ahead with Tikun Olam. Pause for a moment to understand the determination and impact of ongoing Israeli blessings to the world despite 24/7 terror on one of their three borders. Consider how your family, friends, and world benefit from the last hundred years of their outsized accomplishments as indicated by their trove of Nobel prizes. 

Here are just a couple more. An Israeli device won the 2021 MedTech Breakthrough Award. Theranica, the parent company, developed its Nerivio drug-free product—the first smartphone-controlled wearable that treats severe migraines. 

Abigail Klein Leichman, associate editor at Israel21c.org, reported on May 2, 2021, that a company called Patternox was working on a skin cancer treatment—“an optical scanner to detect suspicious light patterns in lesions long before changes can be seen on the skin’s surface.” She also reported on Ziv Medical Center in Safed (Tzfat), which is using drones to deliver essential medical tests, medicines, blood, and equipment. It is the first hospital to use medical drones. Bypassing earthbound traffic jams, the drones can deliver their lifesaving cargo in half the time it would take by road. (By the way, www.Israel21c.org is an excellent site to read about all Israel’s world-blessing innovations.) 

There is a terrible, continuing terror reality for Israelis. Gaza itself, and other terrorist-run locations, are robbed of multimillions donated to terrorist leaders but used instead to build rockets, dig terror tunnels, and spew hatred and propaganda on its media. During the last war, Hamas even stopped the water supply for Gaza so they could use the water pipes to build rockets. 

Let us pray that someday, terror leaders will abandon their hateful priorities and decide to use the millions donated to them for excellent healthcare in Gaza and the Palestinian territories rather than oppressing their own populations and Israelis. Until then, I am confident that Israelis will remain in their posture of Tikun Olam. 

And what would our world be like without Jewish medical contributions? Untold millions dying from waterborne diseases due to unsafe water. More parents grieving deaths of their young children due to polio. More sadness and sorrow would have infected the hearts and minds of too many people to count. Our praises and thanks to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob for depositing many extra doses of brilliance into His Jewish people who have blessed our world!

Please join CBN Israel in prayer this week for the people and nation of Israel:

• Pray with thankfulness that God has truly blessed His chosen people in order that they would be a blessing to the rest of the world.
• Pray that Israel and the Jewish people would continue to be a light to the nations. 
• Pray that countless stories of Israel’s people taking part in Tikun Olam will spread throughout the world rather than the vicious lies and slander.
• Pray that Christians will rise up and join orgs like CBN Israel who are committed to reaching millions worldwide with the true story of Israel and the Jewish people.
• Pray for us to learn how to effectively join God in the redemptive story He is telling through His chosen people.

Reams of paper stacked miles high could not contain all that God has given the world through His people. Nations around the globe can be grateful for the many contributions farsighted and innovative Israelis have provided the world.

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 now an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel 25 times. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited by Artist Pat Mercer Hutchens and sits 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.

Imagine waiting at a bus stop and suddenly hearing a bomb siren—with only 15 seconds to find shelter. Tragically, this is the trauma many Israelis face today, and it is taking its toll. 

Israel is no stranger to war and terrorism. The Israeli communities next to Hamas-ruled Gaza have endured years of rocket attacks from across the border. But the recent barrage has put the entire nation in the crosshairs and focused the world’s attention on their plight. 

Most Israeli apartments and homes are built with bomb shelters, which give residents added comfort to have a “safe place” of refuge. And the government does what it can to provide security for all who live there. Yet in rural border towns like Yesha, with growing communities, it has been difficult to keep up with the demand for outdoor emergency shelters. 

But friends like you were there in Yesha for Gil, a dad struggling with PTSD. He agonized over his children’s safety whenever he let them go to the local playground. CBN Israel installed a bomb shelter there, and in other vulnerable areas. Gil recalled, “Now with the bomb shelter at the playground, it is much easier for me to let them go and have fun being kids. Words cannot express how much this means to us, and the peace of mind this bomb shelter provides.”

And CBN Israel is helping many other terror victims, lonely refugees, and families in need—providing encouragement and generous aid.

At this crucial time in the Holy Land, your support can be a lifeline to those who are in crisis. You can bring groceries, financial assistance, safe housing, job training, and more—while sharing vital news and stories from Jerusalem. 

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

By Marc Turnage

The Golden Dome of the Rock provides one of the most iconic and recognizable images of any city’s skyline within the world. The Islamic shrine completed in A.D. 692 by the Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik stands upon the platform of the Temple Mount, which was constructed during the first centuries B.C. and A.D. The Temple Mount refers to the platform and complex upon which stood the Temple constructed by Herod the Great. This was the Temple known to Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Peter, and Paul. It stood on the northern end of the eastern hill of Jerusalem, what the Bible calls Mount Zion. 

Around 1000 B.C., David conquered the Jebusite city of Jerusalem and the stronghold of Zion, which sat on the eastern hill. He made this the capital of his united kingdom, Israel. When his son, Solomon, succeeded his father as king, he extended the city to the northern height of the eastern hill where he built his palace, administrative buildings, and the House of the God of Israel, the First Temple. This building remained situated on the height of the eastern hill until the Babylonians, under Nebuchadnezzar, destroyed it in 586 B.C. The Babylonians carried the Judeans into exile. When they returned to the land around Jerusalem, they rebuilt the Temple, under Zerubbabel. This building underwent renovations and additions in the subsequent centuries; however, our knowledge of this is limited due to the absence of clear descriptions within ancient sources and a lack of archaeological excavation in the area of the Temple Mount.

In the eighteenth year of Herod the Great’s reign as king of Judea, he began a massive remodeling and reconstruction of the Temple area, which ultimately resulted in the construction of the Temple Mount. The construction, which continued into the first century A.D., after Herod’s death in 4 B.C., created a series of four retaining walls that supported the platform, which covered the high point of the eastern hill turning it into the largest enclosed sacred space within the Roman world. The main portion of construction took nine-and-a-half years. Herod apparently oversaw the building of the Temple building, which stood twice the height of the golden Dome of the Rock, and the remodeling of the sacred precincts, an area of five hundred cubits square, during his lifetime. 

The heart of the Temple Mount was the Temple building and the surrounding sacred complex, which including the Court of the Women, the Court of the Israelites, the Chambers of Wood, Oil, Lepers, and Nazirites. Inside the Temple building was the Holy Place, which housed the golden lampstand (the menorah), the Table of Shewbread, and the altar of incense. Beyond the Holy Place was the Holies of Holies, which was entered only by the high priest once a year on the Day of Atonement.

The construction of the Temple Mount continued into the first century as the southern and northern portions of the platform expanded. The four retaining walls of the Temple Mount contained gates that offered access onto the Temple Mount platform. The northern retaining wall contained the Tadi Gate, which rabbinic sources claim was not used at all. The Shushan Gate stood on the eastern wall of the Temple Mount, of which portions seem to predate Herod, and it was lower than the other walls that surrounded the Temple Mount. 

The present eastern gate, known as the Golden Gate (or in Arabic, the Mercy Gate) was built much later than the first century. It was sealed, like most of the gates onto the Temple Mount by the Crusader, Knights Templar, who made the Temple Mount their headquarters. The western retaining wall had four gates. Two were upper and two lower, and they alternated lower and upper. The northernmost gate opened onto a street that ran alongside the western retaining wall. Today it is known as Warren’s Gate (named after the British explorer, Charles Warren, who found the gate). 

In the first century an arched bridge spanned from the western hill to the western wall of the Temple Mount. This bridge conveyed an aqueduct that provided water for the Temple worship. The bridge and the arched gateway that provided access onto the Temple Mount were identified by Charles Wilson in the nineteenth century and bear his name today. Today a portion of the western retaining wall serves as the prayer plaza of the Western Wall, a functioning synagogue, a site holy for Jews. In the women’s section of the Western Wall remains of a third gate can be seen. This gate, known as Barclay’s gate, after the American missionary, James Barclay, who discovered it, also provided access to the street that ran along the western wall. 

The fourth and final gate also offered another elevated access onto the Temple Mount platform. It was supported by a large arch with steps that ascended the southwestern corner of the Temple Mount. The arch, which was the largest arch in the Roman world at the time of its construction, is known as Robinson’s Arch, bearing the name of the American Edward Robinson who identified the spring of the arch, which is all that remains. The southern entrances of the Temple Mount served the majority of Jewish pilgrims who came to Jerusalem for the festivals of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. Two large double gates stood at the top of stairs providing access up a ramp onto the Temple Mount platform. Pilgrims entered on the right of the two gates and exited through the left two gates unless they were in mourning. If they were in mourning, they went the opposite direction in order to receive comfort from their fellow worshipers. 

The western and southern retaining walls were built in the first century A.D. Their construction enlarged the Temple Mount platform to the south, which created a large court outside of the sacred precincts. They also supported a large colonnaded structure that stood on the southern end of the Temple Mount known as the Royal Stoa. 

Herod’s Temple and the surround complexes were destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. During the second and third centuries a pagan shrine stood on the Temple Mount. During the period of the Christian Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, a couple of churches stood on the Temple Mount. With the coming of Islam in the seventh century, the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque were constructed. These two buildings stand on top of the Temple Mount until today.

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

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

When United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Israel, and the United States signed the Abraham Accords on the White House lawn on August 13, 2020, it signaled a historic, miraculous opening of cooperation and benefits to each nation. Morocco and Sudan then joined the Accords, and the cooperative efforts have proven to be successful on many levels. A somewhat surprising, yet outstanding outcome, has emerged: Arab journalists are speaking up, defending Israel during Operation Guardian of the Walls. In addition to these voices, more Christians worldwide are speaking up, praying, and sending tangible relief to millions of Israeli civilians under fire. 

Khaled Abu Toameh, an award-winning Palestinian journalist, rightly points out in his May 20 article for Gatestone Institute that Hamas “serves as a pawn” for Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood as they fight against Israel. He says, “Criticism of Hamas does not make you anti-Palestinian; on the contrary, holding Hamas responsible for the violence and bloodletting actually serves the interests of the Palestinians. How ironic that Arab Muslims are lashing out at Hamas while Israel-haters around the world see no evil in its actions, including the indiscriminate firing of thousands of rockets and missiles into Israel.”

Saudi writer Abdulah Bin Binjad Al Otaibi observed, “Solutions should also stop those [Hamas] who are ready to burn Palestine and its people.” His words could describe Hamas’s firing rockets at three different crossings into Gaza with Israeli and Jordanian truck convoys filled with humanitarian aid. Another writer, Emirati Al-Sheikh Wuldalsalek, adds his accusation that both Hamas and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are “trafficking” in the Palestinian issue.

President of the Bahrain Journalists Association, Ahdeya Ahmed Al Sayed, tweeted about how the children were pulled into the horror—but that children of terror leaders were spared from the atrocities those leaders sanctioned: “Hamas did not use the children of Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Mashaal or Ali Khamenei as human shields. Hamas used the Palestinian people [as human shields].”

However, there are scores of news outlets within the global mainstream media who habitually dismiss the facts and pay no attention to Arab and Christian voices whose views do not line up with their preferred narratives. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, backed by their patron Iran, are the perpetrators. Not Israel. 

Iran, through Hamas, is again responsible for the latest conflict. Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) reports—via its expert translations of Arab media—a speech from Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. On Iranian TV, the Hamas terrorist openly thanks Iran, “which has not given up on providing the resistance with money, weapons and technology.” That admission is straight from one of the terror leaders himself.

These examples make the global media’s lopsided viewpoint—their inattention to Arab voices and their muted reporting on Iran as the world’s largest terror state—even more mystifying. They also ignore Christian media and Christian communities standing by Israel that share the same viewpoints with Arab journalists in the Middle East Gulf states. 

The insights from so many Arab journalists are encouraging. They, along with Christian media—such as The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN)—put the blame where it belongs. The Arab states also face the threat from the apocalyptic Iranian Imams. Arab journalists understand the complexities and experiences of both Arab and Iranian (Persian) mindsets. They grasp the Persian goal of establishing another caliphate by any means possible—including nuclear weapons. 

Christians reading Arab writers’ articles would certainly agree with their opposition to Hamas and Iranian leadership. And drawing our knowledge from Scripture we often gain insights from Jewish scholars like Rabbi Tuly Weisz, editor of The Israel Bible. He writes that one fact overshadows any plans or debates among nations and groups: “Israel is entitled to the land it has, and has been for over 3,000 years. It says so in the most historically accurate document in history: the Bible.”

Iran and its proxies are determined to change Israel—270 miles long and 85 miles wide—into a national concentration camp by means of rockets, drones, and lies. Pro-Israel Christians are on the move, however, like never before, mobilizing to push back once more against terrorist lies during Operation Guardian of the Walls. 

Although mainstream U.S. and international media are busy pushing Hamas’s unreliable statistics and blasting Israel, brave Arab journalists and Christians remain active. Christians are engaged in continuous prayer matched with practical help. Humanitarian outreach, favorable state resolutions, pro-Israel peaceful demonstrations, and Christian writers and speakers are all promoting the fact that Israel is defending its civilians from terrorists. 

I am highlighting here just a few of the numerous ongoing efforts. In politics, through the efforts of activists in the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and Christians United for Israel (CUFI), they have made sure Congress knows the will of some 60 million evangelicals in the United States. CUFI alone, with its 10 million members, has sent out a pledge of support. Congress will definitely feel the impact. 

In an unusual move, AIPAC has taken out ads against U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar in response to her tweet: “Israeli air strikes killing civilians in Gaza is an act of terrorism. Palestinians deserve protection. Unlike Israel, missile defense programs, such as Iron Dome, don’t exist to protect Palestinian civilians.” She did not mention the 650 rockets that exploded inside Gaza, possibly killing or injuring Palestinian residents. Omar, Rep. Tlaib, and a number of other Democrats share a ludicrous lack of knowledge and anti-Semitic comments. They must be met with truth. The “Squad” in the House of Representatives was not happy with President Biden approving a $735 million arms sale of precision missiles to Israel on May 5. Biden’s decision passed in a 15-day expedited congressional review process. 

The state of Alabama has a long history of strong support for the state of Israel. In 1943, Alabama was the first state to officially call for the establishment of the Jewish homeland. Its legacy still thrives with this year’s passage of the Alabama Joint Resolution (Act SJR 138). The resolution reads in part: “Condemns Hamas for deliberately embedding its fighters, leaders, and weapons in private homes, schools, mosques, hospitals, and otherwise using Palestinian civilians as human shields, while simultaneously targeting Israeli civilians.”

Long-time Christian political activist Robin Rowan helped to shape the resolution. She is founder of www.TruthtoPolicy.com, a popular (and growing) online educational ministry that stands against anti-Semitism and for Israel. Ms. Rowan, along with Tom Parker, chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, and John Buhler, founder of the Alabama-Israel Task Force, witnessed the governor’s signature May 21 on the Alabama Declaration of Support for Israel. Also present was Israeli Consul General Anat Sultan-Dadon, who expressed her thanks to Governor Ivey and bestowed upon her a U.S-Israel lapel pin.

Passages Israel (www.passagesisrael.org) is a Christian organization that strengthens the faith of American Christian college students through a nine-day pilgrimage to Israel. Thus far they have hosted 8,000 students. In just a few days the organization raised $10,000 for Israeli children partnering with Artists 4 Israel to help provide The Healing Arts Kit. This groundbreaking therapeutic system is a psychological first aid kit aimed at slowing or stopping the onset of new cases of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It was especially designed for children living through rocket fire, terrorist attacks, and other forms of crisis. 

CBN Israel, along with many other charities, have been linking arms with local Israeli municipalities to save lives by providing emergency bomb shelters to communities who live under the constant threat of terror attacks. These outdoor shelters are designed to protect schools, parks, playgrounds, bus stops, community centers, and other public spaces in high-risk areas. The bomb shelters already in place are serving Israel’s population whether or not the “Red Alert” sirens are going off. Even when the sirens are not sounding, a shelter’s presence alone brings confidence and security to families and communities on a daily basis. The shelters are protecting and saving lives, reducing anxiety, and helping people live as normally as possible. 

Pray with CBN Israel this week for the ongoing terror and violence to subside:

• Pray with thanks that God has preserved His people and His land for generations. 
• Pray for the safety of brave Arab journalists, speaking against terrorists.
• Pray for the conflicts between Jews and Arabs in various Israeli towns. 
• Pray that world media will awaken to facts. 

What are we to do within the conundrum called the Middle East? Let us hold on to the fringe of Jesus’ tallit (prayer shawl) and remind ourselves that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob enshrined a promise in Amos 9:15: “I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them.” 

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 now an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel 25 times. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited by Artist Pat Mercer Hutchens and sits 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 Marc Turnage

The large, scale model of Jerusalem in A.D. 66 offers one of the main attractions at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Hans Kroch, who owner of the Holy Land Hotel in Jerusalem, commissioned Professor Michael Avi-Yonah and his students to create the model in honor of Kroch’s son who died in the War of Independence in 1948. Avi-Yonah provided topographical and archaeological detail and architectural design. 

For many years, the model resided at the Holy Land Hotel. Today the model is housed at the Israel Museum. When Avi-Yonah and his students began the project, the Old City of Jerusalem as well as the City of David—the area of biblical Jerusalem—lay in East Jerusalem, which was controlled by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. 

From 1948 to 1967, the city of Jerusalem was divided between West and East Jerusalem. West Jerusalem belonged to the State of Israel, while East Jerusalem belonged to the Kingdom of Jordan. East Jerusalem contained the area of biblical Jerusalem, which meant that during the period under Jordanian control little archaeological work and activity was conducted; thus, much of the archaeological information that came to light in the latter part of the twentieth century remained unknown when Professor Avi-Yonah built the model. 

This raises the obvious question: how could he have built such an accurate model of Jerusalem in A.D. 66 without the assistance of archaeological discovery? The answer lies in the rich descriptions of Jerusalem provided by the first century Jewish historian Josephus. Josephus wrote his works for a non-Jewish, Roman audience that had never been to Jerusalem. He provided such a detailed description of the city that using what they knew about the Roman world and the land of Israel in the first century, Professor Avi-Yonah and his students were able to produce this model, which contains a great deal of accuracy. While there are some mistakes within the model, it offers a testament to Josephus and his value as our greatest source on ancient Judaism and the land of Israel in the first century. 

Visitors to the model will notice three primary features. First, Jerusalem in the first century covered much more area than the modern Old City of Jerusalem (which has nothing to do with biblical Jerusalem). 

Also, the city had two principal foci. On its western edge, at the highest point of the city, stood the palace of Herod the Great. The largest of Herod’s palaces, his palace in Jerusalem played host to the wisemen (Matthew 2) and Jesus when he stood before Pilate. On the northern end of palace stood three towers, which Herod named Mariamme, Phasael, and Hippicus. On the eastern side of the city stood the Temple and the enclosure that surrounded it, which made the Temple Mount the largest sacred enclosure within the Roman world in the first century. The Temple provided the economic and religious center of the city. 

Jerusalem in the first century produced nothing; it did not sit on a major trade route. It dealt in religion. Jewish and non-Jewish pilgrims (see Acts 2) streamed into the city from all over the known world three times a year: Passover, Pentecost, and Sukkot. Pilgrims approached the Temple from the south. On top of the Temple Mount today stands the golden Dome of the Rock. To gain perspective, Herod’s Temple, the Temple that Jesus, Peter, and Paul knew, was twice the height of the Dome of the Rock. Looking at the model, visitors gain some perspective of its awesome grandeur. 

The third feature of the city is its walls. In the model, people see three different wall lines. The wall that comes from the south-eastern part of the Temple Mount surrounding the southern and western sides of the city, which turns east and connects at the western wall of the Temple Mount, Josephus calls the first wall. A large wall includes the northern neighborhoods; this is Josephus’ third wall, which was built after the time of Jesus. Inside the third wall, visitors to the model see a second wall. The first and second walls contained the Jerusalem that Jesus knew, which was twice the size of the modern Old City. 

One of the biggest challenges for guides of Jerusalem is helping their groups understand the city’s history and many layers. The model of Jerusalem at the Israel Museum offers an excellent visual, as well as a monument to the city at its height in the first century.

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

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8 NKJV).

Pentecost (or Shavuot) was one of the three pilgrimage festivals within ancient Judaism. Along with Passover (or Pesach) and Sukkot, the Law of Moses required every able-bodied male to appear before the Lord on these festivals. In the first century, that meant coming to Jerusalem and the Temple. Luke describes the throngs of pilgrims from all over the world that traveled to Jerusalem for Pentecost. 

Jewish tradition identified the festival of Pentecost as the time when God appeared to Israel on Mount Sinai and gave them the Torah. God’s appearance at Sinai included fire, wind and sounds. Luke wove these same images into his story in Acts 2. He wanted to draw his reader’s attention back to what God did on Sinai when He gave the Torah to Israel, connecting the giving of the Spirit with the foundation of Israel as a nation.

As the crowds hear the disciples uttering the wonders of God in their various languages, Peter stands up before the crowd and explains that what they have experienced is the fulfillment of the words of the prophet Joel. Then, he began to preach the good news about Jesus. 

Within the book of Acts, the proof God gives of Jesus’ messiahship is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit’s coming provides the divine evidence that Jesus is truly the Messiah and that God raised him from the dead. The two—the coming of the Spirit and Jesus’ messiahship—are always linked in Acts. 

People often focus on other aspects and manifestations of the Spirit, but we can never forget that the coming of the Spirit ultimately testifies that Jesus of Nazareth is God’s Messiah, whom He raised from the dead. Peter’s response to the crowd that listened to him: “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38 NKJV).

The coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost fulfilled God’s promises through Joel. It connected to His act of the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. And, most importantly, it testified that Jesus is His Messiah, raised from the dead. Whatever the Spirit’s work is in our lives and in our communities, it should also testify to these things.

PRAYER

Father, thank You for sending us Your Spirit to testify of the truth of Your Son. Amen.

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

With 28,000 miles of stunning shoreline, the Mediterranean Sea annually beckons a third of the world’s international tourists to its gentle waves and pleasant climate. Twenty-two countries and over 3,000 islands show off a tapestry of assorted cultures, geographies, languages, foods, and histories. “Paradise” seems an appropriate description. Yet Gaza is not among these alluring destinations. Of the two million people in Gaza, more than 80 percent live below the poverty line, and unemployment is at 70 percent for the younger generation. What happened?

Like everything “Middle East,” the histories are complex, and context is important. I’m remembering August 15, 2005, when I watched Israel’s Unilateral Disengagement on television and followed the unfolding, unimaginable story. What I saw was grief, anger, suffering, and heartbreak. That day, Israel’s now-deceased Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, with agreement from parliament (Knesset), launched the nation’s Unilateral Disengagement to remove some 9,000 Jewish citizens from their homes, businesses and synagogues in Gaza. Even for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) overseeing the eviction, it was a wrenching, anguish-filled situation. Sharon’s decision to remove Jewish citizens from their homes, schools, synagogues, and communities in Gaza was done in order to appease the Palestinian Authority and the world in an effort to bring peace. That was the dream anyway. 

Yet, prior to 2005, several years of intense and difficult discussions took place between Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and leaders of the global community. The primary question remained, “Will Israel be safer?” Gaza’s population was over a million people and growing, with around 99 percent Palestinian and 0.06 percent Jewish. How could Israel administrate this demographic? Could the IDF offer protections to the small Jewish population? Would friction lessen between Israelis and Palestinians if Jewish citizens left Gaza? The decision created an enormous amount of discord and dispute. Many said it would not bring peace. But Israeli leaders hoped to reawaken a stagnated peace with Palestinians along with an improved international status.  

Try to imagine leaving behind your homes, schools, synagogues, and businesses. Even the graves of 45 loved ones had to be moved, knowing that Palestinians would desecrate them otherwise. The dead included three IDF soldiers who likely died defending Israeli civilians against already active Palestinian violence. Digging up a grave, moving it to another location in Israel, and living through a second funeral. Their loved ones could not even rest in peace.

The Gaza Disengagement took a few days. Fortunately, physical injuries were light with no lives lost in the process. However, the emotional pain of being forced to leave your home of 38 years was a crushing experience for many. The Jewish residents did their best with overall restraint, as did the IDF. Never had an army relocated so many fellow citizens against their will and with such an extraordinary display of courage, discipline, and compassion.

Author Michael Oren, Israel’s former ambassador to the United States, described one scene this way: “The severest test of the battalion’s fortitude—and humaneness—occurred in Badolah’s synagogue, where the settlers were afforded an hour of parting prayer. But after two hours of waiting in the blistering sun, the soldiers decided to enter. The scene that greeted them was shocking: settlers clutching the pews, the Ark and the Torah scrolls, or writhing on the floor. The troops tried to comfort them, only to break down themselves, and soon soldiers and settlers were embracing in mutual sorrow and consolation.” 

The 1967 Six-Day war is a backdrop to 2005. Israelis gained control of Gaza from Egypt after Syria, Egypt, and Jordan attacked Israel to “destroy them.” After winning the Six-Day War, Israelis set about founding 25 towns, reviving the land with crops, flowers, and businesses, and providing employment for Palestinians. For 38 successful years, Israelis planted deep roots, raised families, and celebrated their biblical festivals. That is, until Israel’s 2005 Unilateral Disengagement. 

Exiting Gaza’s Kusufim Crossing into Israel on September 12, 2005, Brigadier General Aviv Kochavi, head of the Gaza mission, declared, “The responsibility for whatever takes place inside falls upon the Palestinian Authority.” But the minute the IDF closed the last gate to Gaza, Palestinians set about to destroy the hopes for their own future. Some even went on a rampage in the land given to them with no Jew left behind. They destroyed everything in sight, even tearing down greenhouses donated for them to keep and prosper. It was as if such behavior was intended to communicate that they would not be satisfied until Israel was no more. The United Nations, governments, and international organizations had met many months before the Disengagement. Nations and banks allocated money to give Gaza a good start. All to no avail. 

A simmering power struggle between the Hamas Islamist terrorists and the Fatah political party of the corrupt Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) finally erupted in the Battle of Gaza (June 10-15, 2007). Fatah had lost parliamentary elections in 2006 after an attempted unity government. The Palestinians were then split into two de facto entities: the West Bank, governed by the Palestinian Authority, and Gaza, governed by Hamas. 

Since Israel launched Operation Cast Lead in 2008 to defend civilians in southern Israel, Iran has supplied Hamas’s weapons arsenal. The Imams are proud of this fact. By Israel’s 2012 Operation Pillar of Defense, Iran and Hamas were openly bragging about Iran’s help. Ali Larijani, speaker of the parliament of Iran, said the following to that ruling body on November 21, 2012: “I am proud to announce that our support for the Palestinians was in money and arms. We are proud to announce that we will continue standing by the Palestinians in the most difficult of situations.” 

Stop and consider. What would you do after 14 years with thousands of rockets aimed at your family, the Red Alert sounding at all hours, and your children crying and running for shelter? You long only for peace, not war. These are only a few kinds of terror that Israeli civilians have endured along with three wars between 2008 and 2014. All wars were instigated by terrorists. Would you shout, “Enough is enough?” 

Iran has kept its deadly promises. The Islamist way of war is the exact opposite of the IDF and international protocols. Iran and its terror proxies remain dedicated to civilian violence not only against Israelis but, in a double war crime, using its own civilians as human shields. Realizing that Israel strives to avoid civilian casualties, these terrorists hide in mosques and hospitals, locate their offices and weapons in high rises, wear no uniforms, and use ambulances and press vehicles to ensure safe passage. And now they have an extensive web of tunnels—dubbed the “Metro”—in civilian areas of Gaza. Conversely, the IDF—in order to prevent noncombatant deaths—warns Palestinian civilians via calls, leaflets, or roof-knockings by dropping non-explosive devices on targeted buildings that house weapons or terrorists.

Understanding some international law and norms is necessary, because who starts a war matters. The United Nations Charter in Article 51 affirms “the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations” by anyone. Gaza’s terrorists have launched all attacks on Israeli civilians.

In his scholarly articles Louis René Beres, Emeritus Professor of Political Science and International Law at Purdue University, makes several prominent points: “Hamas rocket attacks upon Israeli noncombatants are terrorism. Such terrorism—all terrorism, irrespective of so-called ‘just cause’—represents a distinct crime under international law … they have nothing but contempt for normally prescribed legal expectations.” 

Professor Beres also noted a remark from Sheikh Omar Bakri Muhammad, a prominent militant Muslim cleric in London, “We don’t make a distinction between civilians and non-civilians, innocents and non-innocents. Only between Muslims and unbelievers. And the life of an unbeliever has no value. It has no sanctity.”

The Muslim cleric’s remark should erase any doubt about Israel’s right to defend its civilians. His remark also helps answer my “what happened” question in the beginning of my article. The 2005 Disengagement gave Palestinian leaders a golden opportunity. Unfortunately, their hatred for Jews and each other has brought on their destruction. If Gaza really wanted to provide prosperity and well-being for its two million people, they would have chosen to build their own “Singapore by the Sea” with the billions of dollars donated. They would now operate a thriving port to build their economy on the Mediterranean Sea, traversed by 220,000 merchant vessels—a third of the world’s total merchant shipping.

Instead of instigating terror and digging tunnels, all they had to do was build up a beautiful land with its 25 miles of oceanfront property. They could have enjoyed employment at glamorous hotels, fine restaurants, and successful small businesses. Tourists flooding in to enjoy it all. Massive orchards of oranges and fields of flowers to ship to Europe. There would have been no need for Israel to inflict airstrikes or blockades.

Writing these words brings me sadness for the Palestinian people in Gaza, a sadness of what could have been possible for the men, women, and children who live in an open-air prison built not by Israelis, but by hate. And sadness that Israelis have so long lived under relentless terror with no end in sight. 

Many times, I’ve visited the kibbutzim located next to the Gaza fence. Their communities are lovely with flowers, playgrounds, and crops. They celebrate Shabbat, weddings, and all the Jewish festivals. Even though they have lived with ongoing traumatic stress for years, I am inspired by them. They have shown us how to live life, not as victims but as those who bravely hold on to hope as best they can. 

 Please join CBN Israel in prayer this week as we witness this terrible conflict between Israel and Gaza:

• Pray for Israel’s leaders and military to make wise decisions.
• Pray for innocent Palestinians endangered by their own leaders. 
• Pray that world media will give context to the conflict. 
• Pray that God will again rescue His Chosen people. 

We invite you to intensify your prayers for Israel relying on Psalm 144:1-2: 

“Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.”

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 now an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel 25 times. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited by Artist Pat Mercer Hutchens and sits 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.