Jerusalem – the joy of the whole earth?

On Monday, May 14, Israel was the center of some powerful earth tremors.

The 70^th anniversary of the establishment of the Jewish state of Israel, a major and essential step in the fulfillment of the ‘dry bones vision’ of Ezekiel 37:1-14
The recognition by the world’s primary super-power, the United States, of the connection between the Jewish people and their historic and biblical capital Jerusalem. Zechariah 14:7 and Isaiah 2:1-4 prophesy that the recognition of Jerusalem in its multifaceted biblical and Jewish priorities will be the hallmark of international Messianic days
The Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Hamas terrorist group corralled 40,000 Gazan Arabs and then deliberately stampeded them in a coordinated attack against Israel’s security fence guarded by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Using firebombs, explosive devices, shootings, lethal slingshots etc., Hamas placed women and children on the front line of attack, while jihadi gunmen hid behind them, waiting for the opportunity to break into Israel and massacre Jewish civilians. 58 Arabs were killed while attacking IDF troops or attempting to tear down the security barriers. Up to 2,700 Gazans were treated for tear-gas inhalation or wounds from rubber bullets or live fire.

The following are some helpful perspectives on these events.

These are the days of Ezekiel

The prophet Ezekiel was given an End of Days vision wherein the God of Israel would actually bring the Jewish people back to their homeland in preparation for a national spiritual revival. “I will bring you into the Land of Israel,” says YHVH. The May 14 commemoration of the Jewish state’s establishment in our day is human acknowledgment (be it ever so frail) of a mighty work of God.

Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope has perished. We are completely cut off.’Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says YHVH God, Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people’” (Ezekiel 37:11-13)

The redemption of Jerusalem

The prophetess Anna declared on the Temple Mount in Luke 2:36-39 that the redemption of the world is linked to the redemption of Jerusalem. When darkness covers the earth and gross darkness will overshadow all the nations, YHVH’s light will shine on the Jewish people and bring life from the dead to the whole world (Romans 11:12, 15).

“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of YHVH has risen upon you. For behold, darkness will cover the earth and gross darkness the peoples. But YHVH will rise upon you and His glory will appear upon you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising…to bring your sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of YHVH your God, and for the Holy One of Israel because He has glorified you. Foreigners will build up your walls, and their kings will minister to you. For in My wrath I struck you, and in My favor I have had compassion on you” (Isaiah 60:1-3, 9-10)

There have been other U.S. Presidents who spoke of their personal faith during election campaigns, but none of them was sufficiently pickled in the word of God to take a courageous stand for God’s heart and purposes regarding Jerusalem. It took a brash former real estate tycoon and reality TV show moderator to lay America’s cards on the table and call the world’s bluff (www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/statement-president-trump-jerusalem/; www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/12/11/2017-26832/recognizing-jerusalem-as-the-capital-of-the-state-of-israel-and-relocating-the-united-states-embassy). This bold move will bring a measure of blessing to the U.S.A.

Pray for future Presidents (who will also have the ability to undo Trump’s Jerusalem proclamation with “a pen and a phone”) –

A day is coming when all nations will come against Jerusalem to divide it (see Joel 3:1-2; Zechariah 14:1-3).

Let us pray for Jerusalem and for our own nation, that our leaders will make wise and godly choices both today and in that day.

The Palestinian self-destruct switch

The Islamist terror group Hamas has some clear short and long term goals in Gaza. It hasn’t been able to inflict painful Israeli casualties due to Israel’s counter-strategies (obliterating Hamas terror tunnels, IAF Iron Dome missiles against jihadi rockets, shooting down Hamas drones, etc.). So now Hamas has decided to manipulate world media, trying to pressure Israel into caving in to jihad – an IDF retreat from swaths of Israel’s own sovereign territory. The strategy is simple but cruel – stampede their fellow-Gazans into attacking the IDF positions and turning these human shields into cannon fodder (www.gatestoneinstitute.org/12297/gaza-violence).

Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 and handed the entire existing infrastructure in Gaza over to the Palestinian Authority. Within the space of a few days Gazan Islamists had destroyed the majority of that infrastructure. Within two years the terror group Hamas was attacking Israeli civilians with rockets and mortars, calling for Israel’s annihilation based on Islamist jihadi beliefs. The continuing passion to conquer the Jewish state and set up a Caliphate on Israel’s green and pleasant land is still the prime motivator for most religious Gazans.

Israel’s former Ambassador to the United Nations Abba Eban once remarked that the Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. He also noted (after Israel’s lightning victory in the June 1967 Six-Day War), when Israel offered a complete withdrawal in exchange for recognition and full peace (that offer was angrily refused), “I think that this is the first war in history that on the morrow the victors sued for peace and the vanquished called for unconditional surrender.”

The Islamist-led war against the Jewish state has never succeeded in destroying Israel, though it has tried for over 70 years. Hamas tactics are to spill the blood of its own women and youth in suicide attacks against Israel. If they manage to break through Israeli lines, they will slaughter Israeli kibbutzniks and Jewish civilians, calling for a renewed jihad. However, if they die as human shields while throwing Molotov cocktail bombs and shooting at the IDF, then they will be trumpeted by their Hamas handlers as martyrs and there will be a renewed call for jihad.

Once yearly both Hamas and PLO-associated Fatah call for violent demonstrations against Israel – the ‘Nakba’ and the ‘March of Return.’ At those times, when IDF forces are attacked, there are often Palestinian casualties. This May the violent demonstrations were moved forward by one day to coincide with the moving of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem. But make no mistake – the Embassy transfer was not the reason for the jihadi attacks; it was only one excuse of many. The insatiable jihadi passion to murder Israelis and destroy their state – that is the fundamental dynamic at work here (see Ezekiel 36:1-5).

The Grinch who tried to destroy Jerusalem

Dr. Seuss wrote a children’s book years ago about a mythical green and hairy creature called ‘the Grinch.’ When the Grinch saw someone enjoying himself, he got so angry that he bit himself. The Islamist Hamas movement is demonically enraged that Israel exists, that the Jewish people are thriving and strong, and that non-Muslims recognize a restored Jewish city of Jerusalem. During these May riots they are biting themselves ferociously – until the soil of Gaza is drenched red with their own blood.

The world’s news media have fallen unwittingly into line, fulfilling their stage role as ‘useful idiots’ (Lenin’s term). Parroting Hamas propaganda sound bites, they proclaim that the cause of the riots is Trump’s U.S. Embassy move, or even supposed IDF trigger-happy bloodthirst (www.melaniephillips.com/whos-responsible-for-these-gaza-deaths-the-hamas-and-their-western-media-enablers/). When 40,000 violent Gazans attack disciplined IDF soldiers, what is amazing is that there are so few casualties. Actually, IDF snipers follow very strict instructions and only fire at known terrorists, at those throwing IEDs or at those who try to break through the security fences.

In the 1998 film The Siege (Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, Tony Shalhoub), the CIA agent Elise Kraft (played by Annette Bening) comments about the Palestinians that “they seduce you with their suffering.” This same seduction dynamic is Hamas’ pièce de résistance being splashed across the world’s TV screens and front pages – another outstanding example of ‘fake news.’

How should we then pray?

Pray that Hamas plans for destruction and murder in Israel be frustrated and stopped
Pray that Iranian funding and support for Hamas would be exposed and thwarted
Pray for Israel’s security leaders – for divine revelation and strategies
Pray for the Israeli civilian farmers and kibbutzniks in the Gaza periphery – for safety and courage
Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

Striking a match in a roomful of fumes

Israel finds itself in the crosshairs of more than a handful of potential blow-ups this week. It is a time for those who love Jerusalem to be praying. Here is the list of significant events happening this week:

May 6 - Lebanese elections and Hezbollah’s ascendancy

The Shiite terrorist group Hezbollah (www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/other/des/123085.htm) has been on the US list of foreign terrorist organizations since 1997. It has been functioning for years as a proxy army for the Islamic Republic of Iran. In this election it is expected to significantly increase its ‘spoiler’ influence over Lebanon’s stance toward Israel (www.timesofisrael.com/hezbollah-poised-for-major-gains-after-lebanese-election/; www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/with-hezbollah-set-to-make-big-wins-hariri-loses-seats-in-election-1.6069714). Iran has used Hezbollah in the past to attack Israel (www.timesofisrael.com/hezbollah-broadcasts-video-of-attack-that-sparked-2006-lebanon-war/), and security experts surmise that Hezbollah may end up joining in on the next attack against Israel:

Iran has been holding off on further hostilities against Israel until after this election in Lebanon, in order to sway undecided Lebanese voters. As soon as the elections are over, the winds of war blowing out of Iran will change tack abruptly.

May 8 - President Trump’s Iran decision

U.S. President Trump originally gave himself until May 12 to decide whether or not to pull out of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear accord with Iran. Israeli PM Netanyahu’s recent disclosure (April 30; www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5246689,00.html) of secret Iranian nuclear archives (smuggled out of Tehran by the Mossad) reveal a long-term Iranian strategy of bottom-line deception concerning its drive for nuclear weapons (www.timesofisrael.com/iran-lied-netanyahu-drops-a-mossad-bombshell-on-the-iranian-nuclear-deal/; www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5248726,00.html).

President Trump’s decision will certainly up the ante for Iran (www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/iran/iran-israel-and-trump-5-scenarios-ahead-of-the-iran-nuclear-deal-1.6067089). On May 7 the POTUS moved his decision up to May 8, so that decision will come five days sooner than expected (www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/05/07/trump-says-hell-announce-iran-nuclear-decision-2-p-m-tuesday/585689002/). Iran has threatened America if Trump pulls out of the agreement (www.timesofisrael.com/iran-says-itll-resume-nuclear-program-at-greater-speed-if-us-exits-deal/). Israeli military experts surmise that Iran is holding off any military actions out of Syria and against Israel pending President Trump’s decision on JCPOA.

May 9 - Putin-Netanyahu meeting

Israeli PM Netanyahu has met with Russian President Putin at least six times in the past two years. His upcoming May 9 meeting in Moscow is connected to the rising tensions between Iran and Syria (both client states of Russia) and Israel (www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-conflict-with-iran-better-now-than-later/). Russia has stated its intention to transfer its long-range S-300 surface-to-air missiles to Syria. This defense system could conceivably hit Israeli jets in Israeli airspace, and have the potential to become a casus belli (an act or event that provokes war) between Syria and Israel:

May 13 - Jerusalem Day – 51^st anniversary celebration of city’s re-unification

This day (on the Hebrew calendar) commemorates the re-unification of the city of Jerusalem in June 1967, 51 years ago (www.itraveljerusalem.com/article/jerusalem-day/; www.jerusalem.muni.il/en/Pages/default.aspx). This celebration comes one day before the 70^th anniversary of the day on the Gregorian calendar when Israel became a nation once again. As such, it has great meaning and joy for Israelis.

May 14 - Israel’s 70^th Independence celebration (according to the non-Hebrew calendar)

This is the date when Israel became a recognized national entity after 1,813 years of continued conquest and occupation. The date has great symbolism for the Jewish people (https://twitter.com/ambdermer/status/967129384439177222), and also for those who oppose the restoration of the Jewish people to their homeland.

May 14 – The official opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem

President Trump decided to move the US Embassy to Israel’s self-declared capital city of Jerusalem, and put the cherry on top by choosing the date of May 14 to make it official (www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Politics-And-Diplomacy/US-Embassy-road-signs-go-up-in-Jerusalem-553668; https://il.usembassy.gov/opening-u-s-embassy-jerusalem/). For many in Israel, this is a day of great rejoicing.

It is worth remembering that the U.S. State Department is still on record as calling for the internationalization of Jerusalem as a corpus separatum (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_separatum_(Jerusalem)); President Trump’s soon-to-be-announced peace plan seems to call for a Jewish withdrawal of sovereignty and presence from parts of Jerusalem (something the POTUS has never concealed as being a possible step):

At the same time as great rejoicing occurs surrounding the move of the US Embassy to Jerusalem on May 14, it is worth remembering that the Prophet Joel (3:1-2) declares that Messiah Yeshua’s judgment will fall on any nation that participates in the division of Jerusalem. This should spur intercessors on to pray for their own countries in this regard.

May 15 - PLO/Hamas commemoration of Arab defeat in May 1948 War of Independence (the Nakba)

In 1948 the combined might of eight Arab armies (Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Transjordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Arab Liberation Army – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948_Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_War) invaded the fledgling Jewish state of Israel. The Arab forces did not succeed in vanquishing the Jews, nor in carrying out their national massacre. Instead, Israel survived and actually held on to more territory than anyone imagined. This Arab failure to obliterate the Jewish state is commemorated every year by the day of ‘nakba’ (Arabic for catastrophe or disaster). If the Arabs had managed to wreak disaster on the Jews, the Arab world would not be commemorating an Arab nakba, but instead would be celebrating a Haman-like bloody victory over Jacob’s children:

The yearly riots which accompany the nakba will dovetail in 2018 with Israel’s rejoicing at its own 70^th birthday party.

May 15 - Hamas ‘March of Return’ attack on the Israeli border fence

Hamas has been on the US list of foreign terrorist organizations since 1997 (www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/other/des/123085.htm). This jihadi terror group calls for the total massacre of all Israelis and the establishment of an Islamist caliphate on the land of Israel (http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/hamas.asp).

It has called for violent confrontational attacks against Israel Defense Forces manning the border fence between Islamist Gaza and the Jewish state of Israel. Over 30,000 demonstrators took part in the first Friday of violence on March 30 (www.timesofisrael.com/just-in-case-anybody-forgot-what-hamass-march-of-return-is-really-all-about/). Hamas is hoping for a violent climax on Nakba Day May 15. Youth and children are encouraged to attack Israeli troops with Molotov cocktail bombs, while Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists hide among them and shoot at the IDF. This year there will be added fuel to the fire, coming just a few days after the move of the US Embassy to Jerusalem. Organizers are hoping for much violence and casualties, as well as many cameramen and news media ‘reporting live.’

May 15 (or 17) evening - The beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan

The Islamic month of Ramadan, known for its day-long fasting for a duration of one month, is also linked in source Islamic documents to jihad. Hussein Shehata, a well-known lecturer at Al Azhar Islamic University in Cairo (the ‘Oxford’ of Sunni Islam), makes this clear, “Ramadan is the month of victory for those who wage jihad for Allah.”

The onset of Ramadan is close to the Day of Nakba for Arabs in Gaza, Hebron and Jenin. This crosshair intersection of many potent Islamist days as well as many joyous Israeli celebrations has the potential for igniting an explosion in the Middle East tinderbox.

Iran’s plan for revenge against Israel

Iran sees its revolutionary calling as being a standard-bearer in the rush to destroy Israel.

Iran has been moving rockets, drones and missiles into Syria over the past years, preparing for a war against Israel through its Syrian and Lebanese proxies. It has been aiding Syria in the construction of a nuclear bomb factory (which Israel demolished in 2007 –

Iran has moved hundreds of rockets and attack drone bases into Syria, recently sending an explosive-laden attack drone into Israel (where it was shot down within 30 seconds). Israel is reported to have demolished the T-4 Iranian drone base near Palmyra in Syria (www.timesofisrael.com/iranian-media-posts-photos-of-syrian-base-allegedly-bombed-by-israel/) and to have blown up over 200 surface-to-surface rockets in a secret Iranian underground armory (www.timesofisrael.com/syria-strike-said-to-have-destroyed-200-ground-attack-missiles/; www.timesofisrael.com/satellite-captures-destruction-on-syrian-base-after-alleged-israeli-strike/).

These strikes, coupled with Israel’s recent exposure of Iran’s bold-faced lies and dissimulation regarding its nuclear weapons drive, have engendered a strong Iranian resolve to strike at Israel – but from Syria and perhaps from Lebanon’s Hezbollah as well. Israel’s news media has been abuzz since Monday April 30, when the two major opposition parties cancelled their no-confidence motions in the Israeli Knesset (it was noted on Israeli TV) in light of the need to stand together in the face of a national emergency.

Dancing on the Middle-Eastern minefield

This next week in the Middle East appears to be rather dramatic. The most important thing that can be done for most of us is prayer – focused, heart-felt, bathed in compassion and intercession. Your prayers can be a secret weapon in the hands of the God of Israel to bring deliverance and salvation to His chosen people, and to lower both the flames of conflict and resulting loss of life.

How should we then pray?

Pray that Iranian plans for destruction and murder in Israel be frustrated and stopped
Pray for those who are responsible for Israel’s security – for divine revelation and strategies
Pray for the leaders of Lebanon, Syria and Iran to receive divine visitations and revelation from God’s heart
Pray for the Jewish people to be protected from all who would do her harm – both physically and spiritually
Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

Gold, greed and genocide: global industrialists and the murder of the Jews

The Scroll of Esther contains a hidden key which sheds light on how greed influenced Haman’s attempted Persian Holocaust against the Jews.

Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from those of all other people and they do not observe the king’s laws, so it is not in the king’s interest to let them remain. If it is pleasing to the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who carry on the king’s business, to put into the king’s treasuries.” Then the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. The king said to Haman, “The silver is yours, and the people also, to do with them as you please” (Esther 3:8-11)

There is a continuing historical connection between the greed of power-brokers and attempts to destroy the Jewish people. This dynamic was true in jihadi Arabia and as well as in medieval Europe. It catalyzed Hitler’s Germany, drove Saddam Hussein’s Iraq and bewitches today’s Islamic Republic of Iran. Unscrupulous, evil-hearted men with great wealth are set on fire by gold-plated greed; they then actively participate in aiding and abetting Israel’s eradication.

These movers and shakers hail from all over the world, including from the major Western nations. They include leading industrialists and politicians in the USA, the UK, France, Germany and Russia. China and North Korea have also made significant contributions.

Spiritual warfare can be measured by a consistent biblical benchmark – the manifestation of anti-Semitism (see Genesis 12:3; Revelation 12:12-13). It can be charted most clearly in the proliferation of spiritual movements dedicated to the destruction of the Jewish people. At present our planet is pulsating with this anti-Israel darkness.
Those watchmen who have received marching orders from Isaiah 62:1-6 need to gear up for coming struggles. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Investing in Hitler

Leading American and British bankers and industrialists supported Hitler’s Nazi war machine during WWII (www.jta.org/2009/03/13/news-opinion/opinion/op-ed-american-corporate-complicity-created-undeniable-nazi-nexus). They had little problem with his hatred of the Jews. Indeed, some (like Henry Ford) even encouraged Hitler in his bloodlust. Here is a partial list:

J.D. Rockefeller – owner of Standard Oil of New Jersey and Chase Bank. His companies (Standard Oil of New Jersey [Exxon] and Standard Oil of California [Chevron]) were regularly involved in refueling Nazi naval forces, according to a March 31, 1941 U.S. State Department report.

In 1938 Standard Oil’s President Walter Teagle sold 500 tons of tetraethyl lead gasoline (a Luftwaffe necessity) to I.G. Farben, Standard Oil’s second biggest stockholder. Albert Speer, Hitler's architect and wartime armament minister, stated after the war that without certain kinds of synthetic fuel made available by American firms, Hitler “would never have considered invading Poland.”

Standard Oil regularly shipped fuel through Spain to Switzerland for the use of Wehrmacht troops in France. At a US Congressional hearing on September 22,1947, Judge Charles Clark declared that “Standard Oil can be considered an enemy national in view of its relationships with I.G. Farben - after the United States and Germany had become active enemies” (Charles Higham, Trading with the Enemy, New York: Delacorte Press, 1983, page 62).

I.G. Farben, the giant Nazi chemical company (think Bayer Aspirin, Novocain, sulfa drugs, poison gases and rocket fuels; https://ahrp.org/auschwitz60-year-anniversary-the-role-of-ig-farben-bayer/) constructed and operated a vast industrial complex at Auschwitz producing synthetic oil and rubber. This installation consumed as much electricity as the entire city of Berlin. Over 25,000 camp inmates (many of them Jewish) died during its construction alone (www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2530447/The-spying-Scotsman-hunted-Nazis-New-York-The-amazing-story-Britains-clandestine-war-Hitlers-agents-big-money-backers-US.html). Auschwitz’s death factories were built and empowered by, among others, Rockefeller’s substantial economic support.

General Motors (GM) through its Opel subsidiary helped mobilize Hitler’s motorized war machine (www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/general-motors-and-the-third-reich; www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/daily/nov98/nazicars30.htm)

IBM developed computers and punch cards to track and process concentration camp victims during WWWII (www.huffingtonpost.com/edwin-black/ibm-holocaust_b_1301691.html; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_and_the_Holocaust)

Henry Ford – His Volkswagen trucks were used to transport the Nazi army (www.thenation.com/article/ford-and-fuhrer/; www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/1445822/Ford-used-slave-labour-in-Nazi-German-plants.html). In 1924, Nazi Heinrich Himmler described Ford as “one of our most valuable, important, and witty fighters.” In 1931 Hitler stated that Ford was his inspiration and that was why he kept Ford’s life-size portrait next to his desk. Hitler declared, “I shall do my best to put his theories into practice in Germany” (www.washingtonpost.com/national/religion/the-dark-legacy-of-henry-fords-anti-semitism-commentary/2014/10/10/c95b7df2-509d-11e4-877c-335b53ffe736_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.327fdb056bc6). Ford was a major publisher of anti-Jewish propaganda, both in his newspaper The Dearborn Independent as well as in his mass distribution of the anti-Semitic forgery The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dearborn_Independent; www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/henry-ford-invents-a-jewish-conspiracy).

I.T.T. supplied ingredients for the German rocket bombs dropped on London, as well as building the Focke-Wulf fighter-bombers that carried those bombs (www.jta.org/1973/04/24/archive/disclose-itt-had-nazi-ties; www.vdpi.org/American-Corporations-and-Hitler.htm).

The Bank of England was involved in secret financial dealings beneficial to the Nazi regime (www.smh.com.au/business/how-bankers-helped-the-nazis-20130801-2r1fd.html; www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/bank-of-england/10212234/Bank-of-England-helped-the-Nazis-to-sell-plundered-gold.html; www.independent.co.uk/news/the-nazis-british-bankers-1275885.html) as were USA banks like Chase. J.P. Morgan and American Express Banks (https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/europe/270849.stm).

John Foster Dulles and Allen Dulles – Both worked for the Sullivan and Cromwell law firm, which did legal work for Schroder, Rockefeller and Company Investment Bank, a joint Nazi/Gestapo-American venture (www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/143053/hitlers-american-banker). John Foster Dulles (later US Secretary of State) and Allen Dulles (later of the Office of Strategic Services/CIA) represented I.G. Farben (Auschwitz factories) and Fritz Thyssen (Hitler’s biggest German financier). Toward the end of WWII they were involved in laundering Nazi money and personnel in order to develop post-War profit and intelligence connections.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Morgenthau presented a memorandum to President Roosevelt, dated May 29, 1945. A concluding quote states: “Top American industrialists and financiers named (ed. here) are covered by the categories listed above. Henry Ford and Edsel Ford respectively contributed money to Hitler and profited from German wartime production. Standard Oil of New Jersey, General Electric, General Motors, and I.T.T. certainly made financial or technical contributions which comprise prima facie evidence of ‘participating in planning or carrying out Nazi enterprises’”

One analyst has stated about these twisted connections: “For bankers, the most important thing is to keep the channels of international finance open, no matter what the human cost – a world, in other words, not entirely different to today.”

Investing in Saddam Hussein and his nuclear weapons

The Iran-Iraq War (1980-88) attracted superpowers like a magnet. Armaments of all kinds were made available to both sides. Iraq set its sights on chemical warfare (https://foreignpolicy.com/2013/08/26/exclusive-cia-files-prove-america-helped-saddam-as-he-gassed-iran/) which was obtained mostly from Russia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_Union_and_the_Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_War) and Germany.

A chlorine plant known as Falluja 2 was built by Uhde Ltd, a UK subsidiary of a German company. The plant was given financial guarantees by the UK's Export Credits Guarantee Department despite official UK recognition of a “strong possibility” the plant would be used to make mustard gas. The guarantees led to UK government payment of £300,000 to Uhde in 1990 after completion of the plant was interrupted by the first Gulf War (www.theguardian.com/politics/2003/mar/06/uk.iraq). German, Italian and Dutch companies sold chemical weapons materials to Iraq at that time (https://fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/az120103.html).

A total of 80 German companies were listed as supplying Saddam Hussein’s weapons programs (www.theguardian.com/world/2002/dec/18/iraq.germany), including Daimler-Benz, MAN and Siemens. Siemens was discovered to have sold dual-purpose lithotripters with the permission of the German government, These contain electronic switches which can detonate nuclear bombs (www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/leaked-report-says-german-and-us-firms-supplied-arms-to-saddam-136466.html).

At least 24 US companies were also involved in Iraq, including Hewlett Packard, Honeywell, Rockwell, Bechtel, ICS and Unisys.

Russian oil giants Zarubezhneft and Lukoil, France's Total (www.theguardian.com/world/2004/oct/10/france.iraq), and Royal Dutch/Shell all jumped at the chance to invest in Saddam Hussein’s oil industry (www.heritage.org/middle-east/report/facts-who-benefits-keeping-saddam-hussein-power).

The government of France moved ahead of the pack. State-of the art missiles were sold by France to Iraq, and later used against US and Coalition forces in the First Gulf War (www.washingtontimes.com/news/2004/sep/8/20040908-123000-1796r/). On November 17, 1975 France signed an agreement to supply two Osirak highly enriched uranium nuclear reactors which were clearly meant to produce atomic bombs (https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu//NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/iraq19.pdf).

From documents subsequently unearthed, we know that Saddam Hussein was prepared to use his chemical weapons arsenal against Israel if necessary (www.timesofisrael.com/saddam-gave-orders-to-fire-chemical-weapons-at-tel-aviv-if-he-was-toppled-in-first-gulf-war/). In the end 39 Scud missiles were fired by Iraq into Israeli civilian population centers. These attacks on the Jewish state were enabled and facilitated by the combined greed of global industrialists who had no qualms about empowering an enemy of Israel.

A $90 million bunker was built for Saddam Hussein in 1980-82 by Dusseldorf-based construction company Boswau and Knauer, which once built air-raid shelters for Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich, and became part of German construction giant Walter Bau AG after a series of mergers in the 1980s (www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-174300/Saddams-bunker-built-Germany.html; www.cbsnews.com/news/saddams-nuke-proof-bunker/; https://nypost.com/2003/03/16/swank-bunker-for-butcher-saddams-90m-rat-hole-built-to-last/).

The sword of Damascus

Syria has been developing and using chemical warfare against its own civilians over the past years. In January 2015, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government was given a list by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) concerning German companies involved in developing Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal (www.spiegel.de/international/germany/german-companies-suspected-of-aiding-syrian-chemical-weapons-program-a-1014722.html). The list was immediately squelched by Merkel based on the rationale that a release of the companies’ names “would significantly impair foreign policy interests and thus the welfare of the Federal Republic of Germany.”

In February 2018, fragments of Iranian rockets used in two chlorine gas attacks were recovered with the company logo Krempel and the imprint “Made in Germany” engraved on the metal (www.jpost.com/International/Germany-sold-technology-to-Iran-for-use-in-Syrian-chemical-attacks-540760). It turns out that the German government had authorized dual-use technology sales to Tehran in years past.

Though both the USA and Russia are officially obligated to oppose the use of chemical weapons, these weapons of mass destruction are still being used with near-impunity in Syria.

Syria’s attempts to manufacture nuclear weapons have been stymied by Israel on various occasions (www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/OUTSIDE-THE-BOX-Israels-strike-on-Syrias-nuclear-plant-547870). It is Israel’s stated policy to never allow a nuclear or chemical weapons threat against the Jewish state to come into existence (www.timesofisrael.com/israel-more-powerful-than-never-before-says-pm-responding-to-iran-threats/; www.timesofisrael.com/us-officials-say-israel-behind-latest-syria-strike-preparing-for-war-with-iran/). This is now known as the ‘Begin Doctrine’ (https://www.inss.org.il/publication/the-begin-doctrine-the-lessons-of-osirak-and-deir-ez-zor/).

The jihadi threat from Persia

The octopus-like colonialist moves on the part of the Islamic Republic of Iran are slithering out in every direction from Tehran. Missiles and rockets are being fired against Riyadh in Saudi Arabia from Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen. Iranian Revolutionary Guards are solidly established in Lebanon, guiding Hezbollah in preparation for war against Israel. Iranian Shi’ite infantry roam Syria, attacking both ISIS as well as Western-supported forces. Iranian missiles and drones based in Syria probe Israeli defenses, and recently have actually flown into Israel armed with explosive bombs.

At the same time, global industrialists are intent on increasing sales of all kinds (including weaponry) to Iran. As it was in the days of Adolf or Saddam, so the nations of Europe are flocking – this time to Iran – flirting and cajoling and proffering their tainted and putrid wares to the next mass murderer who might buy them. The demonic power known as the prince of Persia (Daniel 10:13, 20) is again plotting another Haman-like annihilation of Jacob’s seed.

Trusting a liar

On April 30 Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu called a closely watched press conference. He presented an intelligence scoop of stunning proportions. Israel’s Mossad and AMAN (military intelligence) succeeded in spiriting over 100,000 documents (a half ton of materials) from Iran’s top-secret archives of atomic research. Overwhelming evidence was presented by Israel that Iran has been lying to the entire world from the late 1990’s concerning its ongoing secret program to develop nuclear weapons, guidance systems and ICBMs. At the same time, Iran has repeatedly boasted and made no secret of its threat to destroy Israel with any nuclear weapons it gets its hands on.

Yeshua once said, in another context, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).

It is said that, if the shoe fits, then wear it! Iran’s leadership stands decisively exposed on the TV screens of the world as consistently lying about its nuclear intentions, actions, and strategies. That country’s leadership cannot ever again be trusted.

Unfortunately, as in the days of Adolf and Neville Chamberlain, most of the nations of the world seem to be blinded by their fears and crazed by their greed for profit. Many world leaders and commentators agree that (obviously) Iran has been lying in the past. But they quickly wiggle free and declare that Iran is probably not actually lying at this very minute, and that Iran should be given the benefit of the doubt. Iran should be free from economic sanctions. World trade should be opened up once again, and Iran should have the freedom to continue on its merry way toward conflagration.

The words of the prophet Isaiah aptly apply to such a situation – regarding both Iran and the pundits of the world: “They trust in confusion and speak lies. They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity!” (Isaiah 59:4).

How should we then pray?

Pray that the plans of the enemy in Iran be frustrated and stopped
Pray for those who are responsible for Israel’s security – for divine revelation and strategies
Pray for the leaders of your own country – that they will receive divine perspective and strategies
Pray for the Jewish people to be protected from all who would do her harm – both physically and spiritually
Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

Make war with cunning stratagems

The Mossad (Israel’s national intelligence agency – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mossad) has a respected international reputation. Its daring operations are the stuff of books and movies. But few know that the agency has a biblical motto. Its original motto was taken from Proverbs 24:6 “For you should wage war with cunning stratagems, and there will be victory through the abundance of advisors” (see also Proverbs 20:8).

Recently the motto was updated to another similar verse from Proverbs, written in the days of King Solomon: “In the absence of a strategic plan, the people will collapse in defeat, but through the multitude of strategic advisors there is victory” (Proverbs 11:14).

Five hundred years after King Solomon, the Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu penned The Art of War, a classic treatise on military strategy (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_War). This book has a profound influence on military thinking in China and in the West, in business tactics, in legal strategy etc. Illustrious military leaders from Chairman Mao Zedong to General Stormin' Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. honor the influence of this book on their battlefield strategies.

Recent events in Gaza call for us to consider the present military tactics of the Islamist terror group offshoot Hamas (in Arabic Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya, Arabic for ‘The Islamic Resistance Movement’ – see https://davidstent.org/hurtling-through-the-fog-of-war-a-messianic-perspective-on-the-new-hamastan/).

One if by land, two if by sea

Paul Revere warned the Massachusetts citizens as he galloped to Concord that the British regulars (the Redcoats) would be invading that very night. One lantern in the church steeple was military code for an invasion from the South (Boston, Brookline, Cambridge), while two lanterns signified the more Northern ‘sea’ route (Charlestown, Mystic River, Medford). Whether by land or by sea, the American colonists needed to be forewarned and forearmed.

John the Revelator mentions the four spheres of creation – on land, in the air, on the sea and under the ground – “every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea” (Revelation 5:13). Hamas has been attempting to wage war against the Jewish people and their state on all four playing-fields. What can be said about their success in these four areas?

“No solution except jihad”

Hamas has been attempting to wage jihad against the Jewish state of Israel since it was established in December 1987, when seven Gazan Islamists gathered secretly and declared loyalty to Hassan al-Banna’s Muslim Brotherhood, to Sayyad Qutb’s Islamist definition of jihad, and to the Qur’an’s and the Hadith’s vision of Israel’s subjugation and destruction. Sheikh Abdullah Yusuf Azzam (Osama bin Laden’s mentor) who later founded al Qa’eda, was involved in strengthening Hamas’ organization and jihadi strategies – before he was blown up in Peshawar in 1989 by unknown operatives.

Hamas’ goals are, like most revolutionary movements, publically proclaimed and readily available. Here are some instructive points from the August 1988 Hamas Charter (www.acpr.org.il/resources/hamascharter.html):

“The Platform of The Islamic Resistance Movement (ed., Hamas): Israel will rise and will remain erect until Islam eliminates it as it had eliminated its predecessors … The Islamic Resistance Movement…joins its hands with those of all Jihad fighters for the purpose of liberating Palestine” (Introduction)

“The Islamic Resistance Movement…strives to raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine” (Article #6)

“Hamas has been looking forward to implement Allah’s promise whatever time it might take. The prophet, prayer and peace be upon him, said: ‘The time will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews; until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him!’” (Article #7)

“Allah is its goal, the Prophet its model, the Qur’an its Constitution, Jihad its path and death for the case of Allah its most sublime belief ” (Article #8 – The Slogan of the Hamas)

“The land of Palestine has been an Islamic Waqf (ed. irrevocably Islamic land, never to be owned again by non-Muslims) throughout the generations and until the Day of Resurrection. No one can renounce it or part of it, or abandon it or part of it … Any … violation of this law of Islam, with regard to Palestine, is baseless” (Article #11)

“(Peace) initiatives, the so-called peaceful solutions, and the international conferences to resolve the Palestinian problem, are all contrary to the beliefs of the Islamic Resistance Movement … There is no solution to the Palestinian problem except by Jihad” (Article #13)

“In order to face the usurpation of Palestine by the Jews, we have no escape from raising the banner of Jihad … We must imprint on the minds of generations of Muslims that the Palestinian problem is a religious one, to be dealt with on this premise. ‘I swear by that who holds in His Hands the Soul of Muhammad! I indeed wish to go to war for the sake of Allah! I will assault and kill, assault and kill, assault and kill’” (Article #15)

“The Muslim women have a no lesser role than that of men in the war of liberation; they manufacture men” (Article #17)

“The women in the house…carry out the most important duty of educating their sons to observe…the duty of Jihad awaiting them” (Article #18)

“The Arab states surrounding Israel are required to open their borders to the Jihad fighters … The other Arab and Islamic states are required, at the very least, to facilitate the movement of the Jihad fighters from and to them (Article #28)

“Israel, by virtue of its being Jewish and of having a Jewish population, defies Islam and the Muslims” (Article #28)

“Media people, … educators and all different sectors in the Arab and Islamic world, are all called upon to play their role and to carry out their duty … Jihad means not only carrying arms and denigrating the enemies. Uttering positive words, writing good articles and useful books, and lending support and assistance, all that too is Jihad in the path of Allah” (Article #30)

The strategy of Hamas is clearly and simply stated:

The existence of Israel as a Jewish state is an affront to Islam
The Jewish state must be totally destroyed and its people murdered
An Islamist government must arise on Israel’s ashes
This is a Koranic and Islamist requirement
There is no possibility of any peace process with Israel
All Islamic countries must allow jihadi attacks against Israel to cross their borders
Media support of Hamas is an effective jihadi strategy

With these seven points in mind, the developing media frenzy over Gaza in the past few weeks comes into clearer focus as part of Hamas’ jihadi military strategy

“Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil!” (Jeremiah 13:23). The Deputy Head of Hamas’ Politburo Moussa Abu Marzouk agrees with Jeremiah, noting that “Hamas changes neither its skin nor its principles and it will deal with the West on this basis” (Jerusalem Post, Thursday February 2, 2006, p.6).

Strategies on the earth

Hamas terror attacks began with the kidnapping and murders of Israeli soldier hitch-hikers. Later jihadi attacks involved RPG attacks on Israeli children’s school buses, grenade attacks and shootings of Israeli civilians, and then suicide bombers on Israeli buses, in shopping malls, restaurants, markets, crowded downtown areas, etc. Mortar attacks in the Gaza Strip on Israeli kibbutzim were also carried out, and in response IDF Special Forces engaged in cat-and-mouse counter-terror operations. In 2005 Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon forcibly removed all Israelis and their kibbutzim and moshavim from Gaza, though many in Israel were opposed to this strategy. Sharon promised that if even one Hamas Qassam rocket were subsequently to be fired into Israel, then the IDF would come back with massive firepower and retake Gaza.

Former President Jimmy Carter was visibly supportive of democratic elections in Gaza (www.cartercenter.org/news/documents/doc2287.html). These elections overthrew the PLO and solidly established Hamas as a democratically elected jihadi government. Hamas then systematically arrested, tortured and murdered many PLO followers. Kneecapping à la IRA was also a regular occurrence (www.hrw.org/report/2008/07/29/internal-fight/palestinian-abuses-gaza-and-west-bank).

Since Israel’s disengagement from Gaza, Hamas has been prevented from carrying out a land invasion of Israel due to the security fences and constant vigilance of the IDF, as well as its asymmetrical disadvantage against Israeli forces. This is still the case on the ground today

Strategies in the sky

Though Gaza now no longer was under Israeli control and no Israelis were living there any longer, Hamas remained true to its jihadi roots and began mortar and rocket attacks on Israel. In spite of Sharon’s vow, from 2006 and up to today, over 20,000 rockets and mortars have fallen on Israel (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestinian_rocket_attacks_on_Israel). The supposed wisdom of PM Sharon regarding the Gaza Disengagement has been shown to be foolishness. The Apostle Paul once noted, “Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” (1 Corinthians 1:20).

Over the past ten years here have been two major IDF incursions into Hamas territory in order to prevent mortar and rocket attacks (Operation Cast Lead, December 2008 and Operation Protective Edge July 2014) as well as countless targeted IAF airstrikes and Special Operations Forces operations.

The development and deployment of Israel’s Iron Dome anti-rocket system (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Dome) has for the most part stymied Hamas’ aerial attempts to murder Israeli citizens and cause civilian infrastructure damage.

Drone warfare has been another Hamas attempt. In this it is following the lead of Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah:

Again, the IDF has achieved marked success in frustrating Hamas’ drone efforts. These repeated failures are causing Hamas to seek out news strategic moves to weaken, damage and defeat Israel.

Strategies under the earth

Though Islamist rockets are very much waiting in the wings (this is also true for Hezbollah’s Lebanon and Assad’s Syria), Hamas has diversified its weaponry. It has turned to digging underground attack tunnels, hoping to be able to surprise IDF and Israeli civilians from the rear. The goal has been to kidnap soldiers or civilians (either alive or dead) and to cause jihadi terror casualties. A network of tunnels has been dug by Hamas far surpassing what U.S. forces encountered in Vietnam:

Israel’s scientific and military strategists have developed engineering counter-strategies involving underground radar sensors (www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5036556,00.html) and these methods have allowed the IDF to neutralize the tunnels, usually when Hamas engineers are busily at work constructing these cross-border tunnels. Israel’s success rate has been so massive that Hamas has again tried to diversify its attacks.

Strategies in the sea

Hamas has been upgrading and training its naval commandos for attacks against Israeli kibbutzim, farms, towns and cities bordering the Mediterranean.

Israel has responded with increased vigilance and technological development of new weapons systems and radar (www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5037845,00.html) which have again frustrated the majority of Hamas efforts to wage jihad against the Jewish state.

Jihad journalism

Hamas finds itself stymied by Israel on land, in the air, at sea and under the ground. Keeping that in mind, and in line with the Hamas Charter Article #30 (see above), Hamas strategic thinkers have chosen a slightly different strategy which, they believe, will cause significant damage to Israel. This involves bussing civilians to the security fences of Gaza, blending Hamas terror operatives into civilians crowds of men, women and children, and then attempting to break through into Israel and create a huge media blitz – creating headlines that might read “The Palestinians have finally returned to their own land!”

Hamas reasons that, should Israel stop the invasion of its country and the violation of its sovereign borders, the result would be lots of Palestinian casualties – men, women, children and terrorists among them. Israel has clearly and repeatedly warned Gazans not to come within 500 meters of the security fences, and that those who approach the fences with harmful intent will be fired on (see also www.timesofisrael.com/white-house-calls-on-gaza-protesters-to-avoid-border/).

Hamas bussed in 30,000 rioters/demonstrators last Friday March 30, Passover eve, and 20,000 this past Friday April 6, 2018. Out of the thousands who attacked the fence perimeters, some of them threw Molotov bombs against IDF soldiers. Others threw rocks or fired steel projectiles from special slingshots. In some cases IEDs (improvised explosive devices) were hurled at Israeli troops or concealed along Israeli security perimeters. Other terrorists fired on IDF troops during the late afternoon or attempted to break through fences under cover of darkness.

Hamas media spinmeisters are portraying the casualties as Israeli aggression and violence, rather than Hamas-initiated attacks on Israeli soldiers protecting an Israeli border fence

On the past two Fridays there have been over 1,000 Palestinians treated each week for tear gas inhalation or rubber bullet wounds, or for live fire wounds. Eleven identified Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists were killed attacking Israeli forces last week (www.timesofisrael.com/hamas-says-gaza-toll-rises-to-18-as-another-palestinian-dies-of-wounds/) and seven others were killed while attacking the fence. This past Friday saw nine deaths under the same circumstances:

Hamas’ goal in these violent demonstrations is to get images of blood – wounded Palestinians – onto the TV screens of the world, and then to accuse Israel and blame it for the wounded and the suffering. They want to create political pressure on Israel, force it to retreat from its own borders and allow a jihadi terror group to establish itself on the mountains of Israel (see Ezekiel 36:1-6). This strategy is reflected in the popular Arabic proverb, “First he hits me. Then he starts to cry. Finally he runs ahead of me to the judge and sues me.”

How should we then pray?

Pray for the plans of the enemy to be frustrated and stopped
Pray for the shapers of world media – that they would receive a revelation of the truth and speak out clearly
Pray for the Jewish people to be protected from all who would do her harm – both physically and spiritually
Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

The Passover Plot – Arsonists and Firefighters in Gaza

There is a popular Arabic proverb, “First he hits me. Then he starts to cry. Finally he runs ahead of me to the judge and sues me” (Darabani wa baka, wa sabaqani wa eshtaka). Middle East realities have once again proved how relevant this saying is in helping to understand recent and soon-coming events in the Gaza Strip.

The Islamist terror group controlling Gaza is the Muslim Brotherhood offshoot Hamas (in Arabic Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya, Arabic for ‘The Islamic Resistance Movement’ – see https://davidstent.org/hurtling-through-the-fog-of-war-a-messianic-perspective-on-the-new-hamastan/). Spiritually this jihadi group is twinned with the Salafi movement in ideology but has some tactical disagreements regarding the best strategies for achieving those goals (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salafi_jihadism).

We’re marching to Zion

Hamas called for a mass demonstration to be held on the eve of Passover 2018. Of course, the choosing of that day does not mean that Hamas has now embraced Jewish holidays. They just like the heightened symbolism and scorn of turning Hebrew holidays into auspicious days for attacking the Jewish state. This strategy was also used by Egypt, Syria and the Islamic world in their surprise attacks on Israel during the 1973 Yom Kippur or October War (see www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/10/arab-israeli-war-of-1973-what-happened-171005105247349.html).

Another reason for choosing Passover Eve is because of what some Palestinians call “Land Day” – a day commemorating six Israeli Arabs killed in 1976 while attacking Israeli security forces.

The main organizers of these mass demonstrations (called the Great Return March) are Hamas (www.terrorism-info.org.il/app/uploads/2018/03/E_082_18.pdf), with the enthusiastic support of terror groups Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and supporters of former senior Fatah official Muhammad Dahlan (www.memri.org/reports/gaza-strip-initiative-collaboration-hamas-palestinian-islamic-jihad-and-supporters-fatahs).

Not violent or violent – or both?

The march was advertised as being non-violent – “to be expressed in an extensive nonviolent demonstration at the separation fence” (in the Gaza daily Filastin, February 8, 2018). Hamas declared that the march “should take place without clashes [with Israel] in order to protect the young people.” The strategy was to organize a march of hundreds of thousands towards the Israeli security fences in order to force the Jewish state to allow unimpeded immigration of hostile Gazan Arabs.

March organizer Ahmad abu Ratima posted on Facebook (February 18, 2018): “The goal of the Great Return March is more important than the killing or wounding of a few (ed. Israeli) soldiers... The march will begin with a demonstration unrestricted in time at least 700 meters from the separation fence, and it does not aim to reach the fence at this stage.”

At the same time Hamas spokesman Moussa Abu Marzouq boasted on his personal Twitter account (February 7, 2018): “Those besieging Gaza must know that the Gaza residents will not break, and that their eyes are still to their land, either peacefully or belligerently. The separation fence is no obstacle for them. The #Great Return March that is advancing towards our land is the path to victory and return.” Hamas is calling for five million descendants of Palestinians (most who were not born there) to be allowed to immigrate to Israel. This of course would lead to the destruction of the Jewish state, as well as the establishment of a jihadi entity in its place (as happened in Gaza).

On February 6, 2018 the Great Return March Facebook page posted an excerpt from an article by Hamas refugee department director Issam Adwan defining the march as resistance. It stated: “The enemy can be resisted by various means…Some of these means are nonviolent and others are violent. All are legal, accessible, and feasible, and all have an impact.” As well, Fayez Abu Shamalah, a Hamas columnist, wrote in the Filastin daily February 5, 2018, “Will the people of Gaza … march, along with Hamas, to the border of the Zionist state, in a ferocious mass-procession and demand the right to return to Palestine?”

Journalist Jibril Odeh wrote in the Filastin daily (February 20, 2018) that the armed terrorist operations of Hamas should not be criticized: “We must not forget the importance of military action in the war for independence… The resistance is one entity, and a gunshot fired in Jenin is no different from an explosive charge in Khan Yunis.”

Hamas activist Yusuf al-Sharqawi called on the public to rush forward until they were face to face with the soldiers, and even to try to take their guns away (Filastin al-Yawm, March 27, 2018).

Hama’s media goal of a Palestinian ‘non-violent march’ is an attempt to deceive world media – while simultaneously engaging in Islamist terror against the Jewish people and their state.

Abu Ratima then appealed to the example of Martin Luther King as a defense of Hamas’ violent/non-violent strategic march: “What is the next step after the success of the #Great Return March and the entry of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees into Palestine that has been occupied since 1948? …We will insist on remaining … a non-violent movement of struggle, along with the ‘inside’ Arabs [i.e., Israeli Arabs], so as to attain our civil rights, the way Martin Luther King did in the U.S.” (Facebook, February 8, 2018).

No one gets hurt – we guarantee it!

According to Talal Abu Zarifa of the terror group Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), the organizations will not allow demonstrators to approach the fence unless a decision has been made to cross the fence and escalate the activity (al-Aqsa TV, March 17, 2018).

According to senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad spokesman Khader Habib (Al Resala.net, March 19, 2018), the March will jump-start a two-year process consisting of three stages (www.terrorism-info.org.il/app/uploads/2018/03/073_18_E.pdf):

mass activities near the border
erecting tent camps on site to stress the Palestinian ‘right of return’
breaking through Israeli military lines and marching into Israel

The Muslim Brotherhood website Arabi21.com declared “Even if some people are killed during the actual breaching [of the border]...it will be a reasonable price to pay” (Arabi21.com, February 7, 2018).

Oudeh added that the goal of this non-violent action of unlimited duration, is meant “to exhaust the (ed. Israeli) occupation on the security, political and media levels.”

Simultaneously, the March organizers re-emphasized the non-violent nature of the march and that they would prevent harm from coming to the participants (Palestine Online, March 26, 2018).

“He who plants thorns should not expect to gather roses” (Arabic proverb)

The officially released schedule set the start of activities on Friday, March 30, 2018, at 10:00 AM. Free bus transportation was being offered to the site from every mosque in the Gaza Strip (Paldf, March 27, 2018). Portable toilets and meals were provided free of charge. Activities are to continue on a daily basis until they peak on May 15, 2018 (www.terrorism-info.org.il/app/uploads/2018/03/E_082_18.pdf) – the day some Palestinians commemorate the losing of their 1948 war of destruction against Israel (also called the ‘naqba’).

On the morning of Friday’s march, Israel’s Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman addressed Gazan residents in Arabic on Twitter. He accused Hamas of playing with their citizens’ lives, and warned that anyone who approaches the security fence would be put in danger: “I suggest that you get on with your lives and not participate in the provocation,” he tweeted.

IDF Brigadier General and IDF Spokesman Ronen Manelis said that Israel wanted to avoid violence, but warned that the IDF would shoot anyone who approaches the border's security fence, effectively enforcing a ‘no go’ zone for Gazan Palestinians.

On Friday March 30, 2018 (the Eve of Passover) approximately 30,000 Gazans approached the security fences at six pre-arranged locations. Rioting broke out involving the burning of tires, rock throwing, Molotov bombs and deadly metallic balls from slingshots all aimed at IDF troops guarding the line. At one point four Gazan gunmen directed automatic fire at Israeli soldiers.

Over 100 IDF sharpshooters were spread out along the security line, joined by a bolstered infantry, drones with tear gas ability and other aircraft.

Many hundreds of Palestinians began to attack Israeli lines. Within a few hours over 1,000 of these attackers received treatment from Palestinians medics – most for tear gas inhalation, some for rubber bullet injuries, etc. Sixteen Gazans were shot and killed while attacking IDF troops. Four of those sixteen were directing rifle fire at Israeli soldiers. At latest count ten of the sixteen killed were known terrorists.

Hamas Politburo leader Isma’il Haniyeh declared that the march constitutes “the beginning of a return (ed. of the Palestinian people) to the entirety of the land of Palestine … Walk in the path of Allah (ed. an Islamic phrase for jihad) – you are the victors!”

Hamas’s Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar did not mince words on Friday afternoon, “The March of Return will continue… until we remove this transient border… Our people can’t give up one inch of the land of Palestine.”

Seeing red on the West Bank

The prophet Ezekiel (as well as many others) foresaw a day when the descendants of Edom/Esau would attempt to wrest control of the Jewish homeland by cruel force, bringing terror to the sons of Jacob and claiming the Land of Israel for themselves:

“O mountains of Israel, hear the word of YHVH.Thus says YHVH God, Because the enemy has spoken against you, ‘Aha!’ and, ‘The everlasting heights have become our possession,’ therefore thus says YHVH God, Surely in the fire of My jealousy I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, who appropriated My land for themselves as a possession with wholehearted joy and with scorn of soul, to drive it out for a prey” (Ezekiel 36:1-2, 5)
“Thus says YHVH God, Because Edom has acted against the House of Judah by taking vengeance, and has incurred grievous guilt, and avenged themselves upon them, therefore thus says YHVH God, I will also stretch out My hand against Edom …I will lay My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel. Therefore … they will know My vengeance, declares YHVH God” (Ezekiel 25:12-14)

When Arabic-speaking jihadi invaders conquered the Land of Israel circa 638 A.D. this prophetic process described by Ezekiel moved into high gear. The Palestinian terror movement which seeks to invade Israel once again and establish a jihadi state on the mountains of Israel is bringing this process to a climax.

Gaza and Abraham

The God of Israel promised that the territory of Gaza belongs for eternity to the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob:

“On that day YHVH made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your seed I have given this land, from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates’” (Genesis 15:18; see also Judges 1:18)

Egypt’s former annexation of Gaza

Egypt originally claimed the Gaza Strip as part of Egypt and in 1959, Egypt merged the Gaza Strip into the United Arab Republic. All references to an independent Gaza were abolished and an Egyptian administration was officially imposed. By doing this, Gamal Abdel Nasser de facto canceled official Palestinian self-rule over Gaza. This lasted until Israel liberated those territories in the Six-Day War of June 1967.

The Palestinian counterfeit of the Return to Zion

The Palestinian terror movement has modeled some of its strategies on Jewish themes. If the Zionist movement spoke of a Return to Zion based on the hundreds of references in the Hebrew prophets, so the Palestinians would begin to speak of ‘the right of return.’

In the same way as Ezekiel says that no Jewish person will remain in the countries of the Exile but that all Jews will return (see Ezekiel 39:27-29), so Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Fatah and the PLO began to speak of the ‘return’ of five million descendants of Arabs whose grandparents once lived in the Land of Israel – hence the title ‘the March of Return.’

These Palestinian political and military strategies can properly be described as ‘Palestinian Replacement Theology’ – replacing Jews with Edomites, replacing the name ‘Israel’ with the name ‘Filastin,’ and replacing the name ‘YHVH’ with the name ‘Allah’ (see Exodus 3:15).

Why do the nations rage?

The response of the nations of the world to attacks on Israeli army positions by Hamas and Islamic Jihad is in keeping with its general anti-Israel trend (www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-43603199):

Palestinian President Mahmoud al-Abbas declared that Israel bears “full responsibility” for the Gazan deaths
UN Security Council condemned the violence after an emergency session
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an independent inquiry into the deaths
Guterres also appealed to those concerned to refrain from any act that could lead to further casualties
UN Deputy Political Affairs chief Taye-Brook Zerihoun declared: “Israel must uphold its responsibilities under international human rights and humanitarian law”

Another Arabic proverb seems to fit here: “He who has approved of a wrongdoing is as guilty as he who committed it.”

How should we then pray?

Pray for the plans of the enemy to be frustrated and stopped

“They devised a plan, but it will be thwarted. They spoke out a scheme but it will not stand, because God is with us” (Isaiah 8:10)

Pray for the Jewish people to be protected from all who would do her harm – both physically and spiritually

“No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; And every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of YHVH, and their vindication is from Me, declares YHVH” (Isaiah 54:17)

Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

Passover – God’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

At the onset of WWII Prime Minister Winston Churchill consolidated a number of secret intelligence operations groups into the SOE (Special Operations Executive) in the UK’s fight to defeat Nazi Germany. This new group was given various informal names, including ‘the Baker Street Irregulars’ (one of their offices was at 64 Baker Street), ‘Churchill’s Toyshop,’ and the ‘Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.’ This last term was a droll aside at those British and American diplomats who frowned strongly on the use of counter-terrorist methods against the Nazi juggernaut. “Gentlemen don’t read each other’s mail” was their naïve understanding.

One of SOE’s branch offices, formally titled British Security Coordination, was headed up by Canadian businessman Sir William Stephenson. Their offices, located in the Rockefeller Center, coordinated the work of SOE, SIS and MI5 with the FBI and OSS (Office of Strategic Services – later transformed into the CIA).

The God of Israel is described in the Bible not only as the Prince of Peace. He is also a God of military warfare and intelligence strategy. Moses shouted out a victory song to this God of the Hebrews on the beach beside the Sea of Reeds (commonly known as the Red Sea). As the bodies of Egyptian charioteers washed up onto the sandy shore, Moses unashamedly declared that “YHVH is a warrior – YHVH is His name!” (Exodus 15:3).

The familiar Passover story also has an angle which may be unfamiliar to some – YHVH’s behind-the-scenes maneuvers and battle plans. These stratagems form the backdrop and catalyst for the mighty Exodus from Egypt.

Pharaoh – a wrench in YHVH’s toolchest

The God of Jacob spoke to Moses quite forcefully, giving him highly specific instructions about what to say to Egypt’s Pharaoh:

Then YHVH said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says YHVH, the God of the Hebrews, Let My people go, that they may serve Me.For this time I will send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth. For if by now I had put forth My hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, you would then have been cut off from the earth. But, indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name through all the earth’” (Exodus 9:13-16)

The Exodus story is not a simple clash between Pharaoh the king of Egypt and Moses the former Prince of Egypt. God reveals that one of the main goals of the story is to communicate a message to all mankind – that there is no god in existence who is like YHVH the God of the Hebrews.

This God, this YHVH, was setting up the king of Egypt for judgment and a measure of desolation – in order to proclaim the fact that the God who watches over Israel will judge any nation who raises its hand to weaken or attack the Jewish people

Just to make sure that the point was really driven home, YHVH declared that, by the time this whole process was over, He would not even allow a small dog to bark at or threaten the Jewish people:

“Moreover, there shall be a great cry in all the land of Egypt, such as there has not been before and such as shall never be again.But against any of the sons of Israel a dog will not even bark, whether against man or beast, that you may understand how YHVH makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel” (Exodus 11:6-17)

The Apostle Paul echoes the thoughts of the God of Israel when he teaches: “So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.’ So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires” (Romans 9:16-18).

Pharaoh was raised up by God to be a vessel which would receive judgment and dishonor. The reason for the divine judgment was his actions and heart attitudes toward the Jewish people. This divine principle is one of the linchpins of the Passover story, and it is highly relevant for our day as well

Strategic-level spiritual warfare

The Tenth Plague was the striking down of the firstborn. This awesome display of God’s power brought the agony of death to every Egyptian household – though all Jewish homes which applied the blood of the lamb to their doorposts were spared.

The God of Israel explains why He was about to bring that plague down upon the nation of Egypt. The Jewish people were (and are) God’s firstborn among the nations. A blow against them is a blow against their Father:

Then you shall say to Pharaoh, “Thus says YHVH, Israel is My son, My firstborn.So I said to you, Let My son go that he may serve Me. But you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will kill your son, your firstborn” (Exodus 4:22-24)

The power behind the pantheon of Egyptians gods/demons were very real spiritual forces, powers and principalities. “For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but YHVH made the heavens” (Psalm 96:5).

YHVH’s plagues were all directed against specific demonic powers. The frog was sacred to the idol Heket; Hapi was the spirit for whom the waters of the Nile were sacred; the sun was sacred to Ra; the cow was holy to Apis; Horus was considered the son of Isis, as was Pharaoh. As each plague turned objects worshipped by common Egyptians into cursings, so YHVH was showing His sovereign anger at how the Egyptians were enslaving and harshly treating Jacob’s children. “For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments – I am YHVH” (Exodus 12:12).

The fearsome judgments of YHVH were directed against both the leaders who cursed Israel as well as against their people the Egyptians. This biblical principle needs to be recovered and taken to heart in our day, for many countries have already aligned against the Jewish people, their land, their city and their welfare

From Pharaoh’s slaves to YHVH’s servants

Every Passover at the Seder table we Jews declare “Avadim hayinu l’Far’oh b’Mizrayim” – we were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt (Deuteronomy 6:21). The God of Isaac was our Great Emancipator, freeing us from Egyptian slavery: “And it shall be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is this?’ then you shall say to him, ‘With a powerful hand YHVH brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery” (Exodus 13:14).

The Scriptures let us in on a secret, though – we were set free from an Egyptian tyrant in order to serve a greater King. “For the sons of Israel are My servants. They are My servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt. I am YHVH your God” (Leviticus 25:55).

The Exodus is not only a Festival of Freedom; it is a rejoicing that we are now free to love God with all our heart, our soul and our strength, and to serve Him with a full heart. To quote Martin Luther King, “Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”

He brought us out to bring us in

The whole point of the Exodus was to move us from point A to point B – to take us out of the land of slavery and to bring us into the Promised Land. God is the divine people-mover, and He moved the Jewish people out of Egypt in order to bring us into the Land of Israel and to be our God: “I am YHVH your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God” (Leviticus 25:38).

God never intended for the Jewish people to stay scattered across the globe and find liberty, equality and fraternity in France or in any other country. The goal always was (and remains) Israel as the only homeland for the Jewish people

YHVH promises to regather His Jewish people back to their land, taking them from every country to which they have been scattered: “For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land” (Ezekiel 36:24).

He even goes further than that and promises to not leave even one Jewish person stuck in the Diaspora/Exile, but to bring each and every Jew home to the Promised Land:

When I bring them back from the peoples and gather them from the lands of their enemies, then I shall be sanctified through them in the sight of the many nations.Then they will know that I am YHVH their God because I made them go into exile among the nations, and then gathered them again to their own land. And I will leave none of them there any longer (Ezekiel 39:27-28)

The Exodus from Egypt in Moses’ day looks forward prophetically to events happening in our day, for YHVH promises to stretch forth His hand a second time (see Isaiah 11:11-16) and restore the entire Jewish nation to the entire Land of Israel.

How should we then pray?

Pray for the whole nation of Israel to receive a personal revelation of God’s heart – His burning desire and His overwhelming ability to free us from physical and spiritual slavery and oppression
Pray for the Jewish people to be protected from all who would do her harm – both physically and spiritually

Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

The Ghost of Purim and the Prince of Persia

The Feast of Purim is about to roar into town! Those who love the Scriptures will meditate once again on the Jewish-Persian Scroll of Esther – remembering the agony and the ecstasy of how the Jewish people were nearly destroyed by an evil Iran-based plot. Jews across the globe will read the Megillah (the Scroll of Esther), dress up in costumes, perform Purimshpil plays, and of course eat copious amounts of homentashn (the Yiddish word for triangular poppy-filled pastries, known as ‘oznei Haman’ – “Haman’s ears” in Israel).

This holiday is Biblically commended for Jewish people to celebrate (Esther 9:26-32). In the Bible, the horrifying threat of genocide against Jacob’s children is unbelievably thwarted by the God of the Hebrews, whose name is strikingly absent from Esther’s Book. Nervous relief spills over into exuberant joy for every generation of Jews who somehow manage to survive Satan’s continuing hardcore attempts to destroy Israel.

Here are a few brief nuggets from the Scroll of Esther, the little-known Biblical jewel of a book.

Superpowers have a pretty consistent record of turning against the Jewish people

Persian King Cyrus was prophetically honored by Isaiah and given the title “My anointed” (Isaiah 45:1). The God of Israel inspired him to open up the doors of restoration and free the Hebrews, encouraging them to return to their Promised Homeland (2 Chronicles 36:22-23) in 539 B.C.

Yet barely sixty years later Haman rose up to conduct a state-sponsored genocide of the Jewish nation. Even though Queen Esther was the Persian King’s wife (and close to the seat of power), Satan had managed to penetrate the inner council of the King and turned the Persian monarchy into a weapon formed against Jacob’s people

If an ancient superpower could turn from blessing Israel to cursing Israel in such a short time, could not such events happen again in our day? The only protection against such a hot-cold turnaround is a foundation which is based on a biblical understanding of Israel’s calling and destiny, as well as a commitment to honor God by honoring His people.

Fear, jealousy and covetousness nurture the roots of anti-Semitism

Haman’s murderous hatred of Mordechai was triggered by that Jewish man’s unwillingness to bow and scrape before him (Esther 3:5-6). It was only a short step to planning the mass murder of Mordechai’s people. Haman’s insecurities and fears opened him up to demonic influence – an anti-Semitism marked by murderous hatred.

Haman’s suave appeal to King Ahashverosh (Ahasuerus in English, Xerxes in Greek, or Khsharyasha in Old Persian) focused on three charges against the Jewish people:

The Jews are different and live separately. These people are then seen as dangerous in the minds of those who fear those who are different: “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom” (Esther 3:8)
The Jews are suspected of being treasonous to their host countries because they follow revealed teachings which they say are from God: “Their laws are different from those of all other people and they do not observe the king’s laws” (Esther 3:8)
The Jewish people’s hard-earned financial resources needs to be forcibly taken from them even by oppression and murder: “If it is pleasing to the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who carry on the king’s business, to put into the king’s treasuries.” The king said to Haman, “The silver is yours, and the people also, to do with them as you please” (Esther 3:9-11)

Fear, jealousy, suspicion and covetousness lie at the root of anti-Semitism. This was true for Haman, for the Samaritans, for the Church Fathers, for the armies of the Crusades and the Inquisition, for Martin Luther, for Hitler, for Stalin and for much of the Arabic-speaking and Islamist world today.

God’s burglar alarm is still armed, ready and waiting for anti-Semites

Genesis 12:3 tell us that the one who mocks or despises the Jewish people, the one who treats them as of little consequence, the one who says that God is finished with them (that is the exact sense of the Hebrew verb used here meqalelecha) – he will be cursed by God.

Corrie ten Boom’s father watched the Nazis rounding up the Jews of Netherlands and cart them off the be murdered. He remarked sadly to her, “I pity the Germans, for they have touched the apple of God’s eye.” Casper ten Boom was referring to the promise of Zechariah 2:8, “He has sent me against the nations which plunder you [Israel], for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye.”

The nation which raises its hand against the Jewish people – whether in the open or hidden from sight, whether through using terror or supporting terror or not confronting terror – YHVH of armies promises an assured burning judgment.

“Now YHVH saw, and it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice.And He saw that there was no man, and was astonished that there was no one to intercede. Then His own arm brought salvation to Him, and His righteousness upheld Him.He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head. He put on garments of vengeance for clothing and wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.According to their deeds, so He will repay – wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies. To the coast lands He will make recompense…For He will come like a rushing stream which the wind of YHVH drives. A Redeemer will come to Zion” (Isaiah 59:15-20)

It’s hard for old principalities to learn new tricks

The Book of Daniel pulls back the curtain on superpower machinations, revealing the hidden influence of demonic principalities over world powers. Paul describes such satanic majesties as “rulers, powers, world forces of this darkness, spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). The angel Gabriel hones in on two of these demons assigned to oversee superpowers as “the prince of the kingdom of Persia” and “the prince of the kingdom of Greece” (Daniel 10:13, 20).

In the same way, today there are high-ranking demons who carry national and imperial/super-power portfolios. Modern superpowers certainly have their spiritual “suckerfish” – demons whose job it is to influence a country’s leadership to oppose God’s heart, ways and strategies, with special focus on doing harm to the Jewish people (see Daniel 10:13, 21; 12:1).

Some of those ancient principalities moved Haman to destroy the Jewish people scattered through the mighty Persian empire (Esther 3:12-15; 1:1).

Today the Prince of Persia is still at work, as a recent quote from Iran’s Foreign Minister demonstrates.

According to the Iranian Fars News agency (https://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961130001487) Mohsen Rezayee, Secretary of Iran’s Expediency Council and former chief of the country’s Revolutionary Guards, told the Hezbollah-affiliated Arabic-language al-Manar TV channel on Monday February 19, 2018, “About Netanyahu's unwise words, I should say that if they carry out the slightest unwise move against Iran, we will level Tel Aviv to the ground and will not give any opportunity to Netanyahu to flee.”

Daniel became aware of high-level spiritual warfare nearly by accident. All he did was begin to intercede for the Jewish people and ask when their prophesied restoration to the Land of Israel and to the God of Jacob would come about (Daniel 9:1-3, 20-23; 10:12-14). The answer to these prayerful questions caused major warfare in the heavenlies between high-level demonic powers (on one side) and God’s elect angels including Gabriel and the archangel Michael (on the other side).

If there is one main point the Books of Esther and Daniel drive home, it is that Satan has a priority focus in his spiritual warfare in harming the spiritual and physical wellbeing, survival, salvation and prospering of the Jewish people.

How should we then pray?

Pray for YHVH to frustrate the genocidal strategies of the Prince of Persia in our day
Pray for the Jewish people to be protected from all who would do her harm
Pray for believers and prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

Dividing the Jewish pie into three pieces

Over the past 150 years some Protestant (and later Catholic) circles have focused a spotlight on the ‘fourfold gospel’ or the ‘full gospel.’ Born out of the Holiness and Nazarene movements, these groups include the Christian and Missionary Alliance, the Assemblies of God, the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel and other Pentecostal groups. In the 1950’s an Armenian-American cattle rancher Demos Shakarian established Full Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship International which helped to popularize the concept of ‘the full gospel.’

Each of these groups enthusiastically focused on the Gospel portrayals of Yeshua the Messianic King of Israel who came to the Jewish people with healing in His hands. Yeshua’s prophetic role of bringing purification to the sons of Levi and pouring out the Holy Spirit on Israel excited their vision. Their emphasis was to bring this message primarily to Gentiles. And for the past 100 years the term ‘full Gospel’ has conveyed this sense of Pentecostal and Charismatic worship and practice.

But let’s take a minute to apply the term ‘full gospel’ to a specifically Hebrew context. That term may actually help us to better understand YHVH’s multifaceted heart, purpose and plan for His Jewish people. The divine strategy emphasizes that there are three essential and distinct steps in Israel’s restoration. Each step is necessary. Each step is interrelated to the other two. No step is to be left out, and no step should be overemphasized. Ezekiel 37:1-14 sums up these three prophetic steps – this ‘full Jewish gospel’ – in a dramatic and poetic way.

Step one – the return to the Land of Israel

“Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says YHVH God, Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel’” (Ezekiel 37:12). In verses 9 and 11, the Jewish people are described as “these slain” who mournfully confess “Our bones are dried up and our hope has perished! We are completely cut off.”

On January 27 there is a yearly commemoration of the six million Jews who were murdered in the Nazi Holocaust. That was the day when the Nazi death camp Auschwitz was liberated by Russian troops. One out of every three Jews on the planet was murdered by the Nazi empire – six million out of eighteen million. The survivors of the Holocaust – the entire Jewish people – could well identify with Ezekiel’s confession that our bones are shriveled up and all our hopes have perished.

YHVH promises to take this ‘slain people’ and bring them back into the Land of Israel. We who are living today are eye-witnesses of this continuing process. The Jewish people have returned to Israel, are returning there as we speak, and will make a full return in days soon to come.

The return of the Jewish people to their Israeli homeland is an ongoing work of God in our day. It deserves our full encouragement and support. It is one of the three steps of restoration – one of the three pieces of the pie. It is not the whole pie. But it is an amazing prophetic piece of that pie!

Step two – the Spirit-birthed resurrection of the Jewish people

“Then you will know that I am YHVH, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I YHVH have spoken and done it, declares YHVH” (Ezekiel 37:13-14).

The spiritual regeneration of the Jewish people is coming. On that day all the descendants of Jacob will:

receive a revelation of YHVH’s holiness and their own personal sins and repent of their sins in mourning (Zechariah 12:10-14)
receive the forgiveness of sins, a new heart and the infilling of the Holy Spirit, thus coming to have personal intimacy with the God of Israel (Zechariah 13:1, 9; Jeremiah 31:33-34)

In light of this spiritual need that the Jewish people have – to receive a revelation of their own sins and their need of atonement – it is a priority that followers of Yeshua everywhere pray and intercede for Israel’s salvation through Messiah Yeshua our atonement (see Isaiah 53). That message of good news – that gospel report – needs to be communicated to the children of Israel with priority and burning zeal. “For I am not ashamed of the good news for it is God’s dunamis (δύναμις, Greek for power) of salvation to everyone who believes – to the Jew proton (πρῶτον, meaning especially, chiefly, with priority) and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16).

The sharing of Messiah Yeshua’s gospel/good news message with the Jewish people is an ongoing and strategic work of God in our day. It deserves our full encouragement and support. Along with aliyah (the return of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel) it is one of the three steps of restoration – one of the three pieces of the pie. It is not the whole pie. But it is an amazing prophetic piece of that pie, and one which must be part of our vision and outreach to Sarah’s children!

Step three – the transformation of Israel into an exceedingly mighty army

Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says YHVH God, Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life.” So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army (in Hebrew, hel gadol me’od me’od - a vast army, much much; Ezekiel 37:9-10).

Ezekiel’s vision explodes on the prophetic horizon: the reborn and restored Jewish nation will transformed into one of the most powerful and historically significant armies that the world has ever seen. The purpose of the return of the Jewish people to the Jewish homeland is not only to grow wonderful Jaffa oranges, to develop cutting-edge computer technologies, and to lead the world in hydroponics and desert agriculture innovations. It is to become God’s powerful army on the face of the earth.

The Middle East is in the throes of both death and life. Violent and protracted battles are being waged right now from one end of the Arab world to the other and, interestingly enough, none of those wars have anything to do with Israel. But in the not too distant future all of these nations will gather (as prophesied in Psalm 83, Ezekiel 36-39, Joel 3, Zechariah 12-14, etc.) to battle against the Jewish state in their attempt to achieve a final holocaust against Israel. Ezekiel’s army will be one of God’s most striking battle flags and secret weapons prepared for that day. Followers of Yeshua need to make sure that they are incorporating this Last Days central vision in their prayers, intercession, worship and activity.

The raising up of Ezekiel’s army from within the Jewish people is an ongoing and strategic work of God in our day. It deserves our full encouragement and support. Along with aliyah (the return of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel) and the sharing of the message of Yeshua (Israel’s Messianic King and atonement), this prophetic army is one of the three steps of restoration – one of the three pieces of the pie. It is not the whole pie. But it is an amazing prophetic piece of that pie, and one which must be part of our strategic vision for Jacob’s children.

Sibling rivalry?

Scattered across the face of the globe there are some sold-out followers of Yeshua who are given over to the three-pronged prophetic vision described above – the three prophetic pieces of the Jewish pie. But some of these believers are so tied into their own piece of the pie, that they come close to denying the spiritual validity or kosher nature of the other two pieces.

Those who focus on Jewish aliyah and return sometimes avoid connection with Messiah Yeshua’s gospel and its priority call to Israel, and sometimes avoid connection with Messianic Jews
Those who focus on sharing the good news of Messiah with the Jewish people sometimes denigrate the importance of Jewish aliyah and works of compassion and blessing the people of Israel
Those who focus on the restoration of the prophetic and apostolic often avoid the present restoration, the prophetic calling and the amazing destiny of the Jewish people, preferring to focus on what they see as the beauty of the Gentile part of the Bride of Messiah, the exclusive role (as they see it) of the Gentiles in bringing about the return of the Jewish Messiah, along with an exclusive and obsessive focus on negative aspects of Israel’s prophetic future

The night is far spent for us to engage in such childish and narcissistic behavior.

“The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12)
“Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise,making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:15-17)

How should we then pray?

Pray for divine clarity and balance for all those engaged in these three areas of Jewish ministry
Pray for spiritual courage for all to recognize and discern the differing gifts and calling God has given
Pray for prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s heart about these issues
Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s army speedily and in our day

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

Betting on the wrong horse

World-class politicians dress in fine clothes and attend gala banquets. Often they are accomplished public speakers who can bring a smile to the lips of their listeners or a tear to their eye.

Yeshua the Messiah once contrasted politicians with prophets: “Those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces!” (Luke 7:25). Prophets, however, were public figures of a totally different breed – like John the baptizer (Yohanan ha-Matbil – the Immerser). He lived in the Judean wilderness, sported a garment of rough camel skin, ate ‘locusts’ or carob pods (see Matthew 3:4) – and spoke God’s truth to those in authority, even at great personal cost.

Speaking the truth to politicians is often a daunting and thankless task. Kings and prime ministers have been known for trying “to make lies sound truthful… and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind” (as George Orwell once said) – while they ignore the wise counsel of YHVH and bet on the wrong horse.

At such times God’s spokesmen and spokeswomen are called upon to declare the uncomfortable truth – that all bets are off. In the words of Isaiah, “Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted. State a proposal, but it will not stand” (Isaiah 8:10). As Daniel declared (in a paraphrased version of Daniel 5:25-28), “You have bet on the wrong horse. Your choices have been weighed by God and have been found wanting. Your kingdom will now be divided.”

Betting on the wrong river

King Ahaz heart was trembling like a leaf in the wind (Isaiah 7:2) and his Jewish nation was shaking with fear due to the military threats of the Arameans of Syria. Powerful political manipulation was being brought to bear on the king, forcing him into an ungodly alliance with the Assyrian superpower (modern Iraq). Isaiah the prophet had warned Ahaz that he should lean instead on the faithful and powerful God of Jacob – the God of his forefather David.

Ahaz rejected the prophetic word and “rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah” (Isaiah 8:6). The Shiloah or Siloam spring (lying in the center of David’s city) was a poetic symbol for Jerusalem and for Jerusalem’s God. Ahaz was about to bet on the wrong horse. His supposed ‘ally’ Assyria would soon invade the land of Judah, wasting towns and villages and even laying siege to Jerusalem (Isaiah 36:1-2). The Bible lets us know that there is a price for betting on the wrong horse.

Betting against YHVH

The Psalmist prophesies of a Day when the nations of this planet will bet against the God of Israel and against His Messiah. “Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against YHVH and against His Messiah, saying, ‘Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!’” (Psalm 2:1-3).

The nations are rebelling against YHVH’s choosing of Jerusalem, His focus on physical Zion and on the Temple Mount (2:6). The world balks at the divine connection between the Jewish God, the Jewish people and the Jewish land. Their international councils aim to counter God’s strategies and to stymie God’s heart for Israel. They will bet on the wrong horse.

This is why the Bible connects these three issues – the Return of Messiah, the judgments of the nations and the borders of the Land of Israel – in a comprehensive Last Days scenario: “For behold, in those days and at that time when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat [ed. YHVH judges]. Then I will enter into judgment with them there on behalf of My people and My inheritance, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and they have divided up My land” (Joel 3:1-2).

Betting on Middle Eastern petro-politics

The nations of the world vote regularly and overwhelmingly at the U.N. in favor of Islamist and Arab petro-political positions. Four-star U.S. General and former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO Wesley Clark once spoke bluntly, “The truth … about the Middle East is, had there been no oil there, it would be like Africa. Nobody is threatening to intervene in Africa” (General Wesley Clark, 92nd Street Y Cultural Center, New York City. 27 Feb 2007). NY Times journalist Thomas Friedman once commented in a similar vein, “We are the addicts. The oil producers are the pushers” (attributed in Commodities: 50 Things You Really Need To Know).

The nations of the world vote regularly and overwhelmingly against the Jewish state of Israel at the U.N. Recently they have even voted to deny the 4,000 year historical connection between the Jewish people, their homeland and the Bible. As U.S. Senator Moynihan once commented, “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.”

When the stains of petroleum smudge the spectacles of world leaders, they become disoriented and end up betting on the wrong horse, choosing an oil-drenched jihadi-based worldview over a Bible-based worldview.

Betting on a Palestinian state

The jihadi conquest and colonialist occupation of the Land of Israel by the armies of Islam (636-38 AD) created ‘facts on the ground’ which are still influencing modern politics. According to classic Islamic law, once a territory is conquered by Islam it becomes waqf – it must remain in Islamic hands forever. The Islamic world chokes on recognizing Jewish sovereignty over Jewish land because of this waqf principle.

During the 20^th century the myth of an ethnic Palestinian people was created out of thin air. Propaganda machines also drummed up the myth of a Palestinian state. Truth is, neither a Palestinian state nor an ethnically distinct Palestinian people have ever existed. Nevertheless, these ‘fake news’ items have been received with overwhelming applause by the nations of the world. The U.N. General Assembly votes consistently in favor of resolutions to further the establishment of an Palestinian Islamist state on the soil promised exclusively by YHVH to Jacob’s children.

The nations of the world are once again betting on the wrong horse. Their pressures to divide the Land of Israel will assuredly bring divine judgment down on their heads.

‘The Palestinian emperor has no clothes’

Mahmoud Abbas (aka Abu Mazen), the President of the Palestinian National Authority, is now in the 13^th year of a four-year term. Abbas is considered by Western powers to be a ‘moderate’ Palestinian leader – in contradistinction to Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic jihad (terrorist groups who all refuse to recognize the Jewish state and have declared everlasting jihad against it). Abbas and his PA are considered in the West as ‘someone with whom one can do business’ (to quote Neville Chamberlain’s description of Adolf Hitler). Uri Savir, an Israeli ‘Oslo’ negotiator with Abbas back in the early 1990s, declared just a few days ago that, “I know him [Abbas] as a moderate.”

Abbas received a Candidate of Sciences degree (Soviet Ph.D. equivalent) at the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow in 1982. His doctoral dissertation (published in 1984) was “The Other Side: The Secret Relationship Between Nazism and Zionism,” a conspiracy theory about the Holocaust. In that dissertation he declared that the number of ‘six million’ murdered Jews was a ‘fantastic lie,’ and that Jews killed by the Nazis were actually the victims of a Zionist-Nazi plot aimed at encouraging mass extermination of the Jewish people (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Other_Side:_The_Secret_Relationship_Between_Nazism_and_Zionism).

Some of Abbas’ comments over the past few days reveal that Palestinian ‘moderates’ are not actually moderate at all. They are the wrong horse to bet on.

A gathering of the Palestinian Central Council (the PLO’s second-highest decision-making body) was convened on Sunday January 14, 2018 in Ramallah in the wake of Trump’s December 6 recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Abbas made the following blatantly delusional and verifiably false claims in a rambling two-hour speech:

Israel is a colonialist project that has nothing to do with Jews. The Dutch who have the world’s largest navy exported Jews to the Middle East on behalf of Europe after World War II to maintain European interests in the region
The millions of Jewish victims of Hitler chose to remain in Europe and be murdered rather than emigrate to Israel
Theodor Herzl (the father of modern Zionism) once said, “We must wipe out the Palestinians from Palestine”
Prime Minister David Ben Gurion forced Jews from Yemen and Iraq to come to Israel against their will
Israel is importing frightening amounts of drugs in order to destroy the Palestinian younger generation
Israel has killed the peace process

Throwing stones at the White House

Abbas also turned up the heat with ‘fighting words,’ insisting on financial support for terrorists and rejecting U.S. mediation while cursing President Trump and his close aides.

Abbas “completely rejects” any attempt to stop the PLO from paying salaries to Palestinian terrorists in Israeli jails as well as to the families of terrorists who died killing Israelis
The Palestinians demand an apology from the British for the Balfour Declaration (which supported a Jewish state in principle), and demand that the British recognize a Palestinian state.
Abbas will not accept the US as a mediator, nor accept American leadership of a political negotiation process
S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman is an offensive human being, and Abbas will not agree to meet with him anywhere. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley will be treated harshly by the Palestinians
Abbas cursed President Trump in Arabic, saying “Yehreb beitak” (May your house be demolished) to laughter from the Council
Abbas stated that “the deal of the century is the slap of the century and we will not accept it… But we will slap back”

The Western world and the United Nations are betting on a dark horse, as Palestinian leaders attempt to divide the Land of Israel and to turn back the clock on the divine restoration of the Jewish people to their Promised Land. As the nations of the world wait patiently in line to place their bets on the wrong pony, it is worth remembering two wry and weathered proverbs:

A racetrack always attracts people who have a special talent for backing the wrong horse
A racehorse is an animal that can take several thousand people for a ride at the same time

‘I second that emotion’

The terror group Hamas (part of the present Palestinian unity government) added their zealous voice of support to Abbas’ scorched-earth declaration on Monday January 15: “The Central Council must end Oslo and stop security coordination and withdraw the recognition (of Israel).”

One month before Abbas’ speech, on December 6, 2017 the Muslim Brotherhood (the spiritual father of Hamas, al Qa’eda, Islamic Jihad, etc.) issued a declaration in Cairo stating that the “US President's statements about his intention to transfer the US Embassy to Jerusalem, in recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of the State of the Zionist entity … are a formal attack by the United States of America on the lands and Islamic sanctities . . . The Muslim Brotherhood is launching today a solidarity call with all Palestinian factions and Islamic movements to ignite an uprising throughout the Islamic world against the Zionist occupation and the American administration.”

The Palestinian consensus – whether it be Salafi, jihadi, Hamas, PA, PLO or any number of such groups – denies and opposes the existence of the Jewish state on the entire land of Israel. Whether by terror attacks, by political salami tactics (slicing off pieces of the land bit by bit), or whether by lawfare, boycott and sanctions at the U.N. and at other international forums – the goal of weakening and eventually destroying the Jewish state is clear. It is the common glue that binds these groups together.

Any nation, movement, party, denomination or individual who places their bets on the Palestinian side is betting on the wrong horse. To paraphrase the American Ambassador to the U.N. Nicki Haley, “For those who don’t have Israel’s back, the God of Jacob is taking names, and He will respond to those nations accordingly.”

Oasis in the desert

There is cause for rejoicing about President Trump and Ambassador Haley’s principled stand regarding Jerusalem and insisting on fair treatment for Israel in international forums. At the same time it bears remembering that certain core principles are not far from the surface for many countries, and these may break through the thin layer of topsoil in the not too distant future.

Certain assumptions still hold sway in large swaths of the U.S. State Department, the Intelligence community and the military, These include perspectives which advocate:

the eventual need to divide the Land of Israel
the tendency to consider Jewish settlement of the Promised Land as illegal and as an ‘obstacle to peace’
the manipulative use of threats and punitive action against the Jewish state

As long as these undercurrents exist, believers need to be praying.

How should we then pray?

Pray for clear divine revelation for the leadership of your country on these issues
Pray for spiritual clarity and courage for the current point-man of the nations, U.S. President Trump
Pray for prophetic intercessors worldwide to tap into God’s perspective on these issues
Pray for a revelation of Messiah Yeshua to come to the beloved Jewish people

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org

YHVH the warrior and the art of strategic pre-positioning

In the memorable words of Bildad the Shuhite, “Dominion and awe belong to Him who establishes peace in His heights” (Job 25:2).

As Christmas lights twinkle, many people will once again have cause to remember and think about Isaiah’s Prophecy of Peace “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us. And the government will rest on His shoulders. And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

But peace is not yet breaking out in the Middle East. Truth be told, the Islamic world is not living in a state of peace. It is rent by Islamist religious wars, by vengeful nationalistic vendettas and by inter-tribal massacres. The Arab world is currently unable to invite Israel to participate in any peace process because the Arabic-speaking world itself knows no shalom.

Millennia have passed since the psalmist wrote “Woe is me, for I sojourn in Meshech. For I dwell among the tents of Kedar! Too long has my soul had its dwelling with those who hate peace. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war” (Psalm 120:5-7).

As we pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6) and speak peace over the Israeli destiny of Jerusalem (Psalm 125:5), let’s take a moment and consider some strategies that YHVH the Man of War (“YHVH is a Man of war, YHVH is His name” - Exodus 15:3) has up His sleeve for the Middle East.

The military strategy known as ‘pre-positioning’

A superpower such as the USA tasks its Department of Defense (DOD) with maintaining stocks of supplies and equipment, called war reserves, to support military units during a war or mobilization. These army war reserves (AWR) or army prepositioned stock (APS) are often stored, or prepositioned, overseas on land (in Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, Israel, Doha, etc.) or on ships near an area of potential conflict. This prepositioning gives highly mobile forces the ability to respond quickly to fast-moving battlefield developments.

The storehouses of YHVH

The Hebrew Bible has many references to otzarot or storehouses. These were strategic warehouses where items of value were pre-positioned for times of challenge or need. Examples include:

Storehouses of olive oil for national as well as Levitical use (1 Chronicles 27:28; Nehemiah 12:44; 13:12)
Storehouses in Solomon’s Temple compounds for dedicated items and for holy vessels (1 Chronicles 28:11-12)
Whole military camps/towns used for pre-positioning food items (2 Chronicles 7:12; 8:15)

One of the most dramatic examples of such pre-positioning involves Joseph in Egypt: “Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseers in charge of the land, and let him exact a fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance. Then let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming, and store up the grain for food in the cities under Pharaoh’s authority, and let them guard it. Let the food become as a reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which will occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land will not perish during the famine” (Genesis 41:34-36).

The God of Israel paints a poetic picture of His goodness to the Jewish people, describing the rains as a gift from His good heavenly storehouse: “YHVH will open for you His good storehouse, the heavens, to give rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand; and you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow” (Deuteronomy 28:12).

The military storehouses of YHVH

The Hebrew prophets tell us about some unusual works of God involving mighty winds and violent storms:

“When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens and He causes the clouds to ascend from the end of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain, and brings out the wind from His storehouses” (Jeremiah 10:13)
“He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap. He lays up the deeps in storehouses” (Psalm 33:7)

YHVH can even stir up powerful manifestations of nature like ‘the perfect storm’ or destructive tornados and hurricanes for His own purposes: “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, or have you seen the storehouses of the hail which I have reserved for the time of distress, for the day of war and battle?” (Job 38:22-23).

On YHVH’s Day of Battle – the day of His vengeance and retribution – He will whip out these weapons from His divinely pre-positioned warehouse and strike His enemies with a blow from which they will never be able to recover: “Is it not laid up in store with Me, sealed up in My treasuries? Vengeance is Mine, and retribution. In due time their foot will slip. For the day of their calamity is near, and the impending things are hastening upon them” (Deuteronomy 32:34-35).

“Now YHVH saw, and it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice. And He saw that there was no man, and was astonished that there was no one to intercede. Then His own arm brought salvation to Him, and His righteousness upheld Him. He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head. And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing and wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle. According to their deeds, so He will repay –wrato His adversaries, recompense to His enemies. To the coastlands He will make recompense. So they will fear the name of YHVH from the west and His glory from the rising of the sun. For He will come like a rushing stream which the wind of YHVH drives. A Redeemer will come to Zion and to those who turn from transgression in Jacob, declares YHVH” (Isaiah 59:15-20).

Pre-positioning the Army of YHVH

The Bible views the Jewish people as an army, and describes YHVH as that army’s Chief of Staff.

“For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?” (David’s declaration concerning Goliath - 1 Samuel 17:26)
Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of YHVH of armies, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted (1 Samuel 17:45)
So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”Then Elisha prayed and said, “O YHVH, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And YHVH opened the servant’s eyes and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (2 Kings 6:16-17; also 2:12)
“You, O YHVHGod of armies, the God of Israel, awake to punish all the nations” (Psalm 49:5)

The prophets spoke of a Last Days Jewish army of Israel that YHVH will raise up. Indeed, this is one of the main purposes Ezekiel gives for bringing the Jewish people back to Zion and Jerusalem before the return of Messiah Yeshua.

Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says YHVH the Lord God, Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life.’So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel” (Ezekiel 37:9-11)

Pre-positioning for the Battle of the Ages

The restoration of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel is not accident or a bothersome road bump on the secular roadmap of history. It is a deliberate act, a strategic decision of the God of Israel. It is a pre-positioning of His Last Days Maccabean warriors in preparation for the battles of Ezekiel’s army.

For more descriptions of this army consider the following scriptures:

Isaiah 41:11-16
Psalm 110:3
Zechariah 12:1-9 et al.

Be encouraged at this season! Though the nations may speak withering curses over the Jewish people, over Jacob’s divine connection to the Promised Land and to Jerusalem the Jewish people’s capital city, the God of Israel laughs. He has plans of His own to set up His throne when Yeshua returns.

Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against YHVH and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!” He who sits in the heavens laughs. YHVH scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger and terrify them in His fury, saying, “But as for Me, I have installed My King upon Zion, My holy mountain.”(Psalm 2)

How should we then pray?

Pray for the continuing return of the Jewish people to their homeland Israel and their capital city Jerusalem – for protection, establishment and revelation
Pray for the spiritual equipping of this army à la Ezekiel 37:9-11
Pray for intercessors worldwide to receive the divine burden of knowing how to pray about these matters
Pray for a revelation of Messiah Yeshua the Light of the World to many Jewish people during this holidays season

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Donations can be sent to:

FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES

BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA

Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: www.davidstent.org