Shalom from Zion

Although no one knows what 2012 holds, we know who holds 2012. Bless you for your prayers and support for us these many years.

[May] The LORD who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion.

Psalms 134:3

Encouraging love for the Word of God

Events in Israel's history are often examples for us today (1 Cor. 10:11). That is one reason why we pray for Israel's leaders to read and study God's Word. So we were pleased to hear that Israeli Prime Minister [PM] Benjamin 'Bibi' Netanyahu said that he is restarting a Bible study group at his official Jerusalem residence. He added that Israel's first PM, David Ben-Gurion, saw the Book of Books as our mandate for our country, and as …the unique spiritual, cultural and historic heritage of our people, as well as a cornerstone of all of human culture.

PM Menachem Begin also had Bible studies at his residence. Bibi's goal in restarting this practice is to encourage love of the Bible among government officials, and by extension, the nation. ("Netanyahu to hold official Bible studies," Israel Today, 11 Dec. 2011)

A lesson from biblical history

An episode from King Ahab's life is relevant today. Syria's king, Ben-Hadad, demanded Ahab's wealth. Ahab gave him what he wanted (1 Kings 20:4). Of course, appeasing a bully whets his appetite, so Ben-Hadad demanded more (v. 5-6). This time Ahab refused (v. 8-9), infuriating the Syrian king, who in a drunken rage, sent his army and allies against Israel.

A prophet told Ahab that God would defeat Israel's enemies so that Ahab would know He is the LORD (v. 13). Israel won, but later Ben-Hadad again attacked Israel. As today, in the natural the odds were against her: …the children of Israel camped before [Syria's army] like two little flocks… but the Syrians filled the country (v. 27). God told Ahab he would be victorious and this time all Israel would know that I am the LORD (v. 28).

After Syria's defeat, Ben-Hadad begged Ahab for mercy based on the reputation of Israel's kings for being merciful (v. 31)! Ahab not only preserved his life, but called Ben-Hadad his brother (v. 32) and made [literally, 'cut'] a covenant with him (v. 34).

Then God rebuked Ahab for being merciful to one God had doomed! Because you have let go out of your hand a man I appointed to utter destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people (v. 42).

The lesson for today

Until Netanyahu's re-election, previous prime ministers, from Rabin to Sharon to Olmert, were like Ahab - merciful to Arafat, Abbas and the rest of the Palestinian terrorist-leaders. The humanistic mindset opposes God's law that the murderer shall surely be put to death (Gen. 9:5b-6; Num. 35:16-18, 30-31, etc.) Rabin resurrected Arafat and his dying PLO and made a covenant, the Oslo 'Peace' Accords, with him. Rabin paid with his life and Israelis have paid in blood - exactly as God said to Ahab, and as Isaiah said concerning those who enter into a covenant with death and an agreement with hell (Isa. 28:14-22).

Israel has a leader who seems to understand this better than most other leaders of democracies. So the spirit of this world hates him and pressures him to 'compromise', using other leaders and global media. Men like Bibi need our prayers to stay on course. In fact, we are to pray for those having political authority over our nations first of all (1 Tim. 2:2:1-4).

Of course, our God is merciful,

but that part of His nature cannot be separated from the rest of who He is. God is loving and kind, but also righteous and just. He loves the sinner, but hates the sin. Through Messiah Yeshua, God's mercy pursues, drawing us to Himself. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow (lit: pursue, chase after) me all the days of my life… (Psa. 23:6a). But if people always mock and reject God's mercy, then they will face God as Judge. …it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: (Heb. 9:27).

While personal judgment climaxes at the white throne, (Rev. 20:11-15), nations reap now what they sow toward God's covenant people. As part of this, sometimes God sets up leaders in order to demonstrate His sovereignty as He removes them (Rom. 9:14-24; cp. Dan. 2:21; 4:17, 34-35; Rev. 17:17).

As for Israel, Psalm 102:1-9 seems to describe the Holocaust, and then verse 13 speaks into her current situation: You shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favor her, yes, the appointed time, is come.

God is not politically correct nor a secular humanist! At times we might think He does or allows something not in line with His character. Yet a god we completely understand is a god we have created to suit ourselves. God (YHWH) is comprehensible only as He has chosen to reveal Himself through His Word (Psalm 36:9; 119:130; 2 Tim. 3:16-17), through His Son (John 14:9; 2 Cor. 4:6) and through His creation (Rom. 1:18-20).

Palestinian 'Refugees' made simple

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister [FM] Danny Ayalon's video, The Truth About the Refugees, (http://youtu.be/g_3A6_qSBBQ) exposes this confusing and controversial situation, explaining that there are still refugees after 60 years because of both Arab leaders' recalcitrance to accept their brethren and a UN refugee agency uniquely for Palestinians.

Ayalon also reveals the forgotten story of Jewish refugees who were kicked out of their homes in the Arab world after the violent Arab reaction to re-establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, 80% of whom came to the newly born State of Israel. Resultant Jewish property loss was in the billions of dollars. Now the Israeli government has a new department to process claims from over 850,000 Jews.

The UN has dealt at least 700 times with Arab refugees and their property, but not once with the issue of Jewish property. ("Gov't Wants Arabs to Pay for '48 Pogroms vs. Jews," Arutz 7, 26 Dec. 2011)

Netanyahu's view on Middle East [ME] uprisings

Addressing Israel's parliament last October, Bibi said, The Arab street has awoken; old regimes have toppled… new ones are rising. No one can guarantee how good or how stable these new regimes will be, nor their attitude towards Israel. And since ME populations have been systematically poisoned with anti-Semitic and anti-Zionist propaganda, these attitudes will not be good.

Bibi foresees a rough time.

The collapse of Gaddafi's regime in Libya, the bloody incidents in Syria, American forces leaving Iraq, the new [Isalmic] government in Tunisia, the upcoming elections in Egypt and many other events… can increase instability within these countries, and between countries.

Regional powers who have control in the ME will try to ensure they have greater influence on new regimes. One of these is Iran, which continues its efforts to obtain nuclear weapons. He said a nuclear Iran would be a terrible threat to the world and a direct threat to Israel. So Israel must strengthen its security to deal with all new challenges and threats, and that must include offensive capabilities, which is the very foundation of deterrence…

For 2,000 years the Jewish people could not defend themselves. This changed when the State of Israel was established, and the Israel Defense Force was founded.

Bibi said that in Israel's neighborhood, peace is made with the strong, not with the weak. Israel is united in wanting a peace that is real, that is anchored in the right of the Jewish people for a nation-state in its homeland; peace that is based on security. We are willing to compromise, but not to discard our security…

Yet, although Israel supports the creation of a Palestinian state as part of a peace agreement, the Palestinians are trying to reach a Palestinian state without a peace agreement… I will not agree to that. No responsible leader would. ("Netanyahu's Speech at Opening of Knesset's Winter Session," www.pmo.gov.il, 31 Oct. 2011)

Truth vs. Lies at the UN

Israel's UN ambassador Ron Prosor, at a UN debate on the ME and the Palestinian situation, said, From 1948 until 1967, the West Bank was part of Jordan; Gaza was part of Egypt. The Arab world did not lift a finger to create a Palestinian state, and it sought Israel's annihilation when not a single settlement stood anywhere in the West Bank or Gaza.

He rebuked PA Chairman Abbas for not mentioning Judaism when he told the UN last September, I come before you today from the Holy Land, the land of Palestine, the land of divine messages, the ascension of the Prophet Muhammad… and the birthplace of Jesus Christ…

Prosor: He denied 4,000 years of Jewish history… It was not an oversight. The Palestinian leadership attempts to erase the connection between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel. ("Israel's UN Ambassador Separates Lies from Truth," Arutz 7, 25 Oct. 2011)

Weeks later, a barrage of rockets and mortars fired by Gaza terrorists fell on southern Israel. Prosor asked the UN's Security Council [SC] why they were not 'shocked' at this overt attack on Israeli civilians. Mercifully, only one person was killed, and 16 wounded, yet, The pain caused by these attacks is permanent. Scars are both physical and psychological… One million Israelis were compelled to stay home from work… 200,000 children were kept home from school… Yet not a single word of condemnation has been uttered by this Council… The silence speaks volumes. ("Israel Slams UNSC on PA Rocket Attacks," Arutz 7, 10 Nov. 2011)

Late in 2011, on the anniversary of the UN's 1947 recognition of the State of Israel, which now is observed at the UN as The International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, and in the face of a tidal wave of pro-PA speeches, Prosor declared, UN Resolution 181 [in 1947] mentions the Jewish state no less than 25 times, but for 64 years the Palestinian leaders have not dared to use the term even once. ("Prosor: The UN is a Rubber Stamp for the PA," Arutz 7, 30 Nov. 2011)

Palestinian deceptions are revealed,

but regularly ignored by the world. "After all," most of the world says, "Israel is the reason why we do not have peace in the ME - let alone the rest of the world. Do not confuse us with the facts."

Fact: Abbas Zaki, a senior member of Abbas' Fatah Central Committee, said on Al-Jazeera satellite TV, that forcing Israel out of Judea and Samaria would end Israel, that the current goal is an agreement based on the borders of June 4, 1967, because the greater goal cannot be accomplished in one go.

What is this greater goal? Zaki explains, If Israel withdraws from Jerusalem, evacuates 650,000 settlers, and dismantles the wall, what will become of Israel? It will come to an end. ("Fatah Official: Shhh! 1949 Lines would be Israel's Doom," Arutz 7, 3 Oct. 2011)

Fact: The PA's joining UNESCO aids it to lay claim to Jewish holy sites, starting with Bethlehem. Already in 2010, UNESCO agreed to declare Rachel's Tomb a mosque and an integral part of occupied Palestinian territories. UNESCO also criticized Israel for declaring Hebron's Tomb of the Jewish patriarchs and matriarchs, an Israeli heritage site. ("PA Plan: Use UN to Cement Claims to Jewish Holy Sites," Arutz 7, 10 Oct. 2011)

Fact: As US presidential candidate Newt Gingrich said, the PA does not recognize Israel's right to exist… Palestinian Media Watch agrees. It is these issues, PA non-recognition of Israel and its support of terror, that are at the heart of the peace process and constitute a major impediment to its success.

During a TV debate (Dec. 10^th), Gingrich noted that the PA's ambassador to India said, There is no difference between Fatah and Hamas. We both agree Israel has no right to exist. PMW says this is one of the most important, yet relatively unnoticed, principles of PA ideology. While the PA recognizes Israel does exist, it denies Israel's legitimacy, that is, Israel's right to exist. This is stated in a 12^th grade PA textbook: Palestine's war ended with a catastrophe unprecedented in history… Zionist gangs stole Palestine and established the State of Israel. (Arabic Language, Analysis, Literature & Criticism, p. 104) Saying Israel was created after Zionist gangs stole Palestine denies Israel's right to exist. (PMW: "Gingrich vs. the PA," Marcus & Zilberdik, JP Op-ed, 15 Dec. 2011)

Fact: Columnist Dan Calic exposes the absurdity of those who see the answer to this conflict as 'two-states living side-by-side in peace', while the PA constantly rejects Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. So why idolize a two-state solution when one side flatly refuses to accept it…? Where do any of the promoters of a two-state solution think the 'solution' exists? Certainly not with Israel giving away more land. What land will comprise borders of a state the other side continuously refuses to accept?

We agree with Calic who questions the sincerity of those who promote a two-state solution… They expect Israel to give up its heartland, thereby… placing millions of innocent civilians at risk of daily rocket and mortar fire… [They] expect Israel to divide its holiest city and give up its holiest site, the Temple Mount. And who benefits from these sacrifices? A people theologically committed to the annihilation of the Jewish people and… the state of Israel. ("America blaming the victim," D. Calic, Ynetnews, 8 Dec. 2011)

The PA's current "Diplomatic Intifada,"

is a precursor for Zechariah 12:2-3 to be fulfilled. Khaled Abu Toameh, an Israeli Arab Muslim, says the 3^rd Palestinian intifada (uprising) is being waged now. It is a Diplomatic Intifada, aimed at rallying the world against Israel in the hope of forcing it to accept all the PA's demands, first and foremost, full withdrawal to the pre-'67 armistice lines. PA officials say if their application for statehood membership in the UNSC fails, they will pursue the battle in the General Assembly, where they can succeed.

The PA views negotiations as pointless because no Israeli government can give them all they demand. So Abbas, turning to the UN, hopes global pressure will force Israel to its knees.

Recognition of 'Palestine' in the General Assembly opens doors for membership in countless UN organizations and agencies, including the International Criminal Court… Once they have legal status there, the PA plans to launch a massive diplomatic campaign aimed at isolating Israel globally, including having it expelled from most UN bodies on the grounds that it refuses to obey UN resolutions concerning the Israeli-Arab conflict.

The PA also looks to prosecute hundreds of Israelis for alleged war crimes against Palestinians… After talking with officials, Abu Toameh was left with the impression that the PA is out to punish Israel more than achieve a state for its people. ("The 3^rd Intifada Is Here," K. Abu Toameh, Hudson Institute, NY, , 8 Nov. 2011)

"Scary US views,"

is the title of a late 2011 JP Editorial. In recent days, there has been a truly frightening articulation of the US administration's perception of Israel vis-à-vis the Muslim world. On [Dec. 2^nd], Defense Secretary Leon Panetta essentially blamed Israel for its own 'increasing isolation,' urging the Jewish state to reach out to its neighbors. He suggested Israel make diplomatic inroads with the Muslim Brotherhood's [MB] Egypt, Erdogan's increasingly Islamist and anti-Israel Turkey, and vulnerable Jordan, a country whose leadership - for the sake of self-preservation - has been making concessions to its own MB.

When asked what Israel might do to advance negotiations with the Palestinians, he said, Just get to the damn table. So Panetta thinks if only stubborn Israel would make more concessions… regional animosity toward Israel would miraculously evaporate after decades of incitement.

Also, the US Ambassador to Belgium, Howard Gutman, blamed Israel for Muslim anti-Semitism in Europe. While the White House distanced itself from his speech, Gutman had carefully planned in advance what he said.

He pinpointed the hatred… intimidation and violence directed at Jews generally as a result of the continuing tensions between Israel and her neighbors. Yet, instead of denouncing Muslims who attack European Jews because Israel stubbornly insists on defending itself, Gutman said these violent acts are a legitimate reaction, thus, different from 'traditional' forms of anti-Semitism.

JP wrote that both these US officials had this in common: a maddening insistence on mixing up cause and effect… Israel's isolation has not deepened as a result of anything it has done (besides existing). In Turkey, Gaza, Tunisia, and now in Egypt, governments have arisen, in democratic elections, that have, or soon will, pursue foreign policies exceedingly antagonistic toward the Jewish state. After all, why would any Arab country want closer ties with Israel when its people in open elections are expressing a distinct preference for a particularly fundamentalist, illiberal and anti-Western, not to mention anti-Israel and anti-Semitic, strain of Islamic leadership?

Any attacks on Jews perpetrated by Muslims purportedly in response to Israeli policies or its attempts to defend itself through military means are no less irrational than any other type of anti-Semitism… [It is] unfair to point to Israeli policies as triggering Muslim violence against European Jews.

While Gutman and Panetta's views are, regrettably, common, these views are held by men who have a critical influence on US foreign policy. That makes it downright scary… ("Scary US views," JP Editorial, 5 Dec. 2011)

Palestinians are an "invented people"

The Palestinians reaped what they sowed when Gingrich labeled them an invented people. Yet, as Barry Shaw notes, many Arabs have agreed. In 1937, Arab leader A. B. Abdul Hadi, told the UN's Peel Commission There is no such country as Palestine. Palestine is a term Zionists invented… Our land was [always] a part of Syria. In 1946, Princeton Arab professor of ME history Philip Hitti, told the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry, It's common knowledge that there is no such thing as Palestine in history. To that same group, Arab Prof. J. Hazam said, that before the 1917 Balfour declaration, there was never a Palestinian question, and there was no Palestine as a political or geographical unit. In 1956, Ahmed Shukari, who later founded the PLO, said to the UN, Palestine does not exist at all. Even Arafat, in 1970, said to an Italian journalist, The PLO is fighting Israel in the name of Pan-Arabism. What you call Jordan is nothing more than Palestine. He was correct as Jordan was created by the British on 77% of the land promised to the Jewish people by the League of Nations in 1922…

And Feisal Husseni, after the 1993 Oslo Accords, said The Palestinian People is nothing more than a 'Trojan Horse' for conquering the land of Israel. ("Gingrich is right about the Palestinian fraud…" B. Shaw, JP Blogs, 19 Dec. 2011)

Iranian threats & boasts

Iran's President Ahmadinejad said Israel's creation is a heinous historical crime, by Western powers to control the ME. Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei, rejected any peace deal that accepts the existence of Israel, which is a cancerous tumor in the ME. ("Iranian leaders host 'Intifada Conference'," ICEJ News, 3 Oct. 2011)

I. Kasnett wrote that the International Atomic Energy Agency's report (Nov. 8^th) confirmed Iran has carried out activities relevant to the development of a nuclear explosive device.

Unfortunately, we live in a world [with] little understanding of the realities we face. European diplomats speak of sanctions and possible future negotiations. The IAEA begs Iran to comply with UN demands. Yet neither diplomacy nor nuclear deterrence will stop Iran as her leaders are driven by a fanatical religious spirit. They believe they can hasten the arrival of the Mahdi [the Shiite Messiah], the 12^thImam who, according to Shi'ite Islamic tradition… will return under conditions of global chaos. Iranian leaders are willing to sacrifice their own people to reach this goal.

Ahmadinejad is a member of the Hojatieh society, which believes it can and should hasten the Mahdi's return. Hojatieh wants to create the global chaos to prepare the way. Most of the world fails to see that Israel is simply first… in Iran's crosshairs. The chaos Iran wants to create has less to do with Israel than it does with the West. Iran already has rockets capable of reaching major European cities.

During the Cold War, both sides were rational and fearful of the consequences of a nuclear war. Iran is not rational. It has openly declared its intention to attack Israel and the West. Nations must take these threats seriously, and base their planning assessments not on rational behavior but on actual behavior… Deterrence, as we know it, is a faulty approach when dealing with Iran. Their leadership is not afraid of retaliatory strikes… ("Deterrence is irrelevant," I. Kasnett, JP Op-ed, 11 Nov. 2011)

It is possible that Israel will have attacked Iran by the time you read this. Please recall how God defines a good government. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil… [If] you do that which is evil, be afraid… He is a minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that does evil. (Romans 13:3-4)

The real face of the 'Arab Spring'

Israel Today wrote that the West, has seen the 'Arab Spring' as the rise of democracy and personal freedom, but in reality, it has spawned the kind of Islamist forces that seized power in Iran's ostensibly pro-democracy movement in 1979.

As Deputy PM Ya'alon notes, you cannot reach democracy by elections… it is a long process that should start with education, adding that it took hundreds of years for Europe to achieve real democracy. Yet, the West thinks the Arab world will transition from totalitarianism to that same real democracy overnight.

ME expert, Dr. M. Kedar of Bar-Ilan University affirmed what many have been saying for years: The Muslim-dominated ME is simply not fertile ground for Western-style democracy… It remains a society where the guy with the most guns or the highest propensity for brutality will always walk away the victor because most voters are too scared to elect anyone else… or they take pride in the power demonstrated by the most violent gun-toters, as was the case for many in Hamas' surprise win. ("Israel: Arab world not ready for democracy," Israel Today, 3 Jan. 2012)

Although officially at peace since 1979, Israel and Egypt have always had a cold relationship… Israel and Jews were regularly demonized in Egypt's media. Now, with Islamists threatening to take over the country, Egypt is returning to the pre-Camp David years during which it led the rest of the Muslim world in its quest to eradicate the Jewish presence from the ME.

On November 25^th, the MB held a rally at one of Cairo's main mosques to mark the 1947 UN partition of the Palestine Mandate and recognition of a Jewish state. All there repeatedly chanted, one day we will kill all the Jews. They finished by chanting, Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv, judgment day is coming! ("Jew-hatred heats up as Islamic Winter grows colder," Israel Today, 27 Nov. 2011)

In January, MB leader, Dr. R. Bayoumi, interviewed in the Arabic Al-Hayat, declared they would never recognize Israel or its right to exist under any circumstance. When reminded that the Camp David Accords obligate Egypt's government to … have peaceful relations with Israel, [he] said he doesn't care. This is not an option… we do not recognize Israel at all… we will take legal action against the peace treaty with the Zionist entity.

So Israel may have another Islamic Republic, besides Iran, to deal with, this time on its very doorstep. And it will be heavily armed with the best American weapons. ("Israel-Egypt peace appears to be nearing its end," Israel Today, 3 Jan. 2012)

Exactly whom does the Islamic Spirit hate?

In late 2011, Muslim terrorists bombed Nigerian churches killing scores of Christians, and blew themselves up in Afghanistan and Iraq, killing scores of Muslims. The only reason they did not kill Jews is because Israel has learned to fight terrorists and win.

The spirit behind Islam is satanic. It kills indiscriminately, and is satisfied with nothing less than human blood sacrifices. What is the biblical response to an entity like this?

You that love the LORD, hate evil…

Psa. 97:10a

Through your precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.

Psa. 119:104

The fear of the LORD is to hate evil…

Prov. 8:13a

It is biblical to hate the spirit behind Islam. In fact, not to hate it borders on sin. Yet to hate the Muslim is not biblical. There are many believers who would never dare say they hate something, that hatred is dangerous. The difference lies in what that hate targets. Do we not hate our sin? Yet that does not mean we hate ourselves. Do we love the Lord? Do we fear Him? Do we believe His Word? If so, hating the spirit behind Islam, not compromising with it, and evangelizing Muslims is the proper biblical response.

A fitting warning from 1899: Winston Churchill's The River War, set out a withering critique of the effect Islam has on its followers, its debilitating effect on economies of nations that embrace it, and the enslavement of its luckless women. While he admits individual Muslims may show splendid qualities, he contrasts this with realities on a collective level. The latest UN Arab Human Development Report, by Arab intellectuals and scholars, confirms this as still true.

Churchill also warned, No stronger retrograde force exists in the world… [Islam] is a militant and proselytizing faith… and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science… the civilization of modern Europe might fall, as fell [that] of ancient Rome. Is the latest nuclear report on Iran enough to wake the West before it's too late? ("A study in self-cannibalization," Martin Sherman, JP Op-ed, 11 Nov. 2011)

Prophetic update

As Yeshua predicted, natural disasters are on the rise. Their stories grabbed headlines in 2011. Even the AP reported, With an almost biblical onslaught of twisters, floods, snow, drought, heat and wildfire, the US in 2011 has seen more weather catastrophes that caused at least $1 billion in damage [12!] than it did in all of the 1980s, even after dollar figures… are adjusted for inflation.

The report noted an alarming trend: During the '80s, the US averaged just one billion-dollar disaster per year. In the '90s… 3.8 per year, then 4.6 [in the next] decade… So far in this decade, after just two years, we have averaged [over seven] billion-dollar disasters per year… ("What Did Jesus Say About 'Natural' Disasters?" Stephen Flurry, theTrumpet.com, 16 Dec. 2011)

Reuters said these disasters are global. Both insurance and weather prediction agencies point to a clear trend: the world's weather is becoming more extreme… Global reinsurer Munich Re says natural catastrophe losses for the first 9 months of 2011 totaled $310 billion, a record… Since 1980, weather disasters globally have more than tripled. ("Will '12 top '11 for record weather disasters?" www.reuters.com, 27 Dec. 2011)

And still nations insist on dividing God's land - not seeing that this brings on them His judgment in the final days (Joel 3:1-2). How can they understand without prophetic voices warning them? Yet many of God's churches are deaf, dumb and blind to His faithfulness to Israel for His holy name's sake (Ezekiel 36:23-36).

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the land.

Psalms 46:10

Chuck & Karen Cohen