War with Hamas – 1/2 year

Who would have thought on Oct. 7, 2023, that this war against Hamas in Gaza would still be raging on, and the captives would still be holed-up and degraded?! Their families and friends and many others are themselves divided over the moral dilemma of getting the captives released NOW at any price, or to wage the war until a decisive victory over Hamas. 

The whole country is again roiling as it was before Oct. 7, mostly to oust the current government, and it has become more violent. The government, including the PM, the intelligence apparatus, the military have MUCH to account for in the failures of at least reaction and response time to the invasion and atrocities of that holiday Sabbath. Now, just yesterday evening the information has come out that two tunnels of Hamas were destroyed that entered into Israeli territory and the communities near the border. Israeli officials had always “reassured” the nation that no Hamas tunnels were built under and across the border, yet now we hear that that was not so. This is a great blow to the trust of those who are responsible for the safety of the nation, and especially against a known and undeterred enemy who says publicly that they will keep up their warfare at every level until they wipe Israel off the map, and Jewish people everywhere. All of this will surely impact the outcomes of future elections, whenever they may take place, and also any negotiations for “peace” after this war.

This war is near to being expanded into a full engagement also on and across the northern border with Lebanon, as Hezbollah — another of Iran’s proxies — has been firing rockets and missiles into Israel from near the beginning of the war in Gaza. Around 80,000-100,000 Israelis have been evacuated from that border area, and their homes and farms, etc, abandoned. No sovereign nation can allow this to remain unchallenged. Some of the residents around the Gaza envelope have returned, but rockets are still being fired from inside Gaza. 

One family from our congregation who lives on one of the kibbutzes is still living in a Beer Sheva hotel. I wrote in my first update, and in a video that I did to give a Biblical perspective to this war, that while everyone in the world wants Israel not to win, and for the war not to expand, it may be that GOD does want Israel to defeat the enemy and for the war to expand. Beer Sheva was the scene of a terrorist knife attack at the central bus station a couple of weeks ago; and a couple of weeks before that, a fatal knife attack was perpetrated at a well-known highway coffee shop rest stop about 15 minutes north of Beer Sheva, and next to the largest Bedouin city in Israel — Rahat. In both incidents, an Israeli citizen from Rahat was the terrorist. A bus carrying children to school on Hwy 90 along the eastern border area — the longest road in Israel, and part of it being the lowest road in the world, going from Eilat in the south to Metula in the north (480 km/300mi) — was attacked by a terrorist gunman. Thank God that the bus was reinforced for security; and the reason that I am writing about it at all is because the children were from a community along that road where one of our congregants grew up, and her mother still lives there, as well as other believers that we know there. Also one of Hamas’ senior leaders, Ismail Haniyeh, living high in Qatar, has a sister living in the Bedouin town of Tel Sheva, just a stone’s throw from the ancient Biblical site of Tel Beer Sheva, visible from our home. She was just recently arrested not for being his sister, but for suspicion of involvement in terror: they found a one kg gold bar plus hundreds of thousands of Israeli shekels and US$ in her family home. (She is married to an Israeli citizen.) Everyone in Israel is affected by the war and ongoing terrorism. All of these attacks have taken place during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. They do not mind attacking Jews and Israel on our holy days, but woe to anyone who should do so on theirs.

Ps 83 speaks about a regional war, with the outcome of it being that the enemies of Israel and of her true God would all know that YHVH is God Most High, and not the god of any other religion or people. Their stated aim, as the Holy Spirit reveals through Asaph (the priest and worship leader who wrote the psalm) is to wipe out Israel from being a nation anymore, and to take the land for themselves. The people mentioned in the psalm are today the Muslim nations surrounding the State and Land of Israel. Their hatred and vitriol is against the Sovereign Creator of the universe, who has chosen a particular people and a particular land, and a particular city within that land to be the battle epicenter for manifesting His glory to ALL, both human and angelic and satanic/demonic! As we heard from a Hamas leader at the beginning of the war, they intend to do an Oct. 7 again and again and again until they achieve their hoped-for objective. This effort began already once the Balfour Declaration was issued, stating the intent to reestablish the Jewish homeland in the land of promise to them. It has only intensified since the establishment of the State in May of 1948, because there was again a sovereign Jewish nation in the land promised by YHVH God by covenant and an oath. It will not cease, I believe, until after Jacob’s Trouble/Great Tribulation, which begins once the Antichrist is revealed by committing the abomination of desolation. Then, Yeshua/Jesus, the Lamb of God, and the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, will come in great power and glory to defeat HIS enemies, and the enemies of HIS people, and establish His Kingdom which will never pass away! YHVH God’s chesed is forever and ever: He keeps His promises for the sake of His holy Name. His mercy will spare Israel and the Jewish people’s annihilation by His and their enemies; His lovingkindness/covenant faithfulness/grace/chesed will fulfill His love covenant promises and oaths to them that are entirely undeserved. 

Even though Easter/First Fruits/Resurrection Day was celebrated on the first Sonday following the first Full Moon after the Spring equinox (which has Biblical legitimacy), Passover this year begins on the evening of Apr 22. (Israel has a leap month this year, Adar2, making the holy week later.) Will the Jewish people in the dispersion mean it this year when they say during the Passover seder, “Next year in Jerusalem!” And, more importantly, will they call out to the true God of Israel to deliver and save them? He is the same today as He was when He delivered and redeemed His people from bondage in Egypt, and the God who is gathering His people from the four corners of the earth back to the land which He gave to our forefathers. 

For those interested, here is a link to a “telling” (Haggadah) of the historic Passover story in five languages. Maybe you will find it of interest and use. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!!