The threat of missiles aimed at Israel is the most significant since the War of Independence, Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai warned recently.
“They can hit our most vital asset, the civilian population we are supposed to be defending,” he told…
Near many synagogues in Israel you can see people standing around like merchants outside a market shouting to sell their merchandise. Newcomers to the country do not know what they want, but I have been here for 50 years and I know exactly what…
Most of us hardly noticed that Israel was having a birthday. No, I’m not talking about its upcoming 50th, which will be celebrated in 1998. It was in August 1897 that a group of Jewish representatives in silk hats and frock coats filed into a hall in Basel, Switzerland, to hear…
On September 26, 1997, Russian President Boris Yeltsin brought the curtain back down. With a single sweep of his pen, he consorted with the darkest elements in Russian society to snuff the lamp of religious freedom that had flickered tenuously since the…
“He who has not seen Herod’s Temple has never seen a beautiful building.” With those deliberately exaggerated words, rabbis extolled the magnificence of the Temple that was in Jerusalem during the first century A.D. Although the religious Jews often despised…
The most volatile 35 acres on earth are undoubtedly those comprising a rectangular platform in East Jerusalem on which the ancient Jewish Temple once stood. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament affirm that a new Temple will once again occupy…
Revelation 17:1–7: Lying silently in the shifting sands of time, Babylon is destined to rise from the ashes of the past to play a major role in end-time events. The name Babylon brings to mind incredible images of a wicked city-state with an abominable…
Historically, some people and groups have denied that Christ came in human flesh. For example, some said that the Christ came temporarily upon an already existing man, Jesus of Nazareth. He came long enough to impart a secret body of knowledge…
An understanding of our family background—how our ancestors lived and how they came to the United States from their countries of origin—satisfies a curiosity in many of us. For myself and other Jewish people with Eastern European ancestry, tracing our roots can…
After the tragic suicide bombing on Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem last September, Yasser Arafat was adamant. The bombers, he insisted, came from abroad; thus, he had no control over the invaders. As a matter of fact, the problem, he claimed, was with…
Hundreds of urns filled with human ashes that were discovered at the former Buchenwald concentration camp were buried [recently] at a mountain cemetery.
The 701 metal urns were found May 7 by carpenters working on the roof of…
For a long time, the debate in Israel about “Who is a proper Jew?” was quiet. Now, in recent months, it has begun to rage again. Every religious group is trying to make proselytes to their form of Judaism and have people follow their…
A few weeks ago I went into the deep woods in Poland with a friend. For him, it was a return trip, one that members of his family had almost certainly taken some fifty years…
In a few months, the State of Israel will commemorate fifty years of modern statehood. No nation in the history of mankind has been born out of such enormous suffering.
“A people considered for centuries as non-fighters carried out in June, 1967 against long odds the most nearly perfect military operation in modern history.” With these words an eminent American historian opened her…
Prime Minister Golda Meir was worried. It was that same strange feeling she had back in 1967, on the eve of the Six-Day War. Reports had been coming in since May…
The Bible pictures Lebanon as a land of towering mountains covered by tall cedars, rising above lush valleys with flowing rivers. Although few of the famed trees grow in the rugged mountains of modern Lebanon…
On July 30, two young Arab men embarked on a suicide mission with the intent to kill and maim more innocent Israelis. Their target was Jerusalem’s Mahane Yehuda market, an open-air shopping strip jammed tightly…
In Chapter 15, John was given a detailed introduction to the bowl judgments. He saw seven angels proceeding from God’s heavenly Temple with seven bowls in hand, ready to pour out God’s wrath upon the earth.
Two Old Testament passages that did this will be noted. Isaiah 9:6 assigned the names “The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father” to the Messiah. Ancient Judaism recognized that this referred to the Messiah.
Jewish people who are serious about practicing their Judaism realize that living incognito is not an option for them. Judaism, by its very nature, teaches its people not to be ashamed of their identity.
The Senate passed a major foreign relations bill [recently] that authorizes $100 million for construction of a new US embassy in Jerusalem. The bill has three other Jerusalem components.
According to a recent news report, the Palestinian Authority has drafted a plan creating a belt of Palestinian communities circling Israeli neighborhoods in Jerusalem. The announcement was made by Faisal Husseini, who is in charge…
I have some of my best conversations with people at the bus stop or on the bus. One recent day I was waiting for the bus to go into Jerusalem…
The State of Israel…will uphold the full social and political equality of all its citizens without distinction of race, creed or sex; will guarantee full freedom of conscience, worship, education and culture…
People have it all wrong these days. Repeatedly we hear men and women talk calmly about their “near death” experiences, about seeing that inviting, great white light at the end of the tunnel.
Many successful businesses engage their employees in an annual ritual known as the “year-end formal performance review.” On those occasions, a manager sits down with an employee, report in hand, and surveys…
The recurrent hatred of Jewry throughout its existence is an enigma—a people so small in number yet so central on the pages of world history. The benefits of the Jewish people to the masses…
As long as I don’t hurt anyone, whatever I do is just fine.” Such proverbs abound in our day. Morality is defined by personal opinions. Courts pass laws based on majority vote or popular consensus.
Revelation 15, although short in length, is not short in significance or importance. It provides a needed introduction to the final phase of God’s wrath. In this chapter John was given two glorious visions from…
A guide is a person who shows the way by leading, directing, or advising. The Friends of Israel uses excellent guides when we host our tours to Israel. These individuals provide insightful information…
The subject of Christ’s eternality deals with the fact that He has always existed as a person from eternity past, with no beginning and no end. The Scriptures give at least three lines of evidence…
The Palestinian Authority is smuggling Katyusha rockets, anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, all in preparation for a future conflict with Israel, a senior Israeli security source said recently.
French ultranationalist Jean-Marie Le Pen recently referred to the Holocaust of World War II as “a detail of history.” According to Le Pen’s version of revisionist thinking…
In Psalm 105:3 it is written, “Glory ye in his holy name; let the heart of them rejoice who seek the Lᴏʀᴅ.” The trouble is, many people in Israel have nothing in which to glory.
When Yasser Arafat rails on Israel and shouts for his Arab listeners to join him in a Jihad (Holy War) against Jerusalem, his apologists say he really means something else…
A number of years ago I had in my library a book titled Great Chapters of the Bible. The author was the late Dr. G. Campbell Morgan, a renowned British biblical scholar and pastor.
Of the many imaginative discourses offered by the Talmudic rabbis is one based on Genesis 28:12.
Ezekiel 36:8–15 Israel is the key in God’s prophetic program among the nations of the world, for it was chosen to be His means of bringing blessing to the world.
Ezekiel 36:16–24 A few years ago a survey was taken to determine which events cause the greatest stress on a family. It was discovered that, next to the death of a spouse…
Ezekiel 36:22–38 In the beginning, God planned a beautiful creation. He created seas and a place of lush vegetation. He made creatures to inhabit the seas and the dry land.
All of the articles thus far in this series have examined the first major area of doctrine—Bibliology (the study of the Bible). This article begins an examination of another significant area—Christology (the study of Christ).
The conflict between good and evil is vividly described in Revelation 13 and 14. In chapter 13 the two beasts reap a harvest of souls through deception and persecution…
My mother gasped when she saw me walk through the door after a semester away at college. I had left home clean shaven with short hair, and now—well, let’s just say she had trouble finding…
An overflow crowd of approximately 1,500 evangelical Christians and Jewish people greeted Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a breakfast held at the J. W. Marriott Hotel in Washington, DC, in April.
The debate that has raged over the Israeli building project at Har Homa, an area in southeast Jerusalem, has raised a fundamental question—one that reflects the central issue in Israel’s sputtering peace process…
Two radical Islamic groups praised the killing of seven Israeli schoolgirls by a Jordanian soldier, and called on Moslems to wage a “holy war” to regain Jerusalem. Jordan’s parliamentary opposition also came out in the…
It is obvious from observing the international scene that most of the world is against the Chosen People of God, Israel. This nation occupies a very small piece of real estate…
Last December, a group calling themselves “Christians for Middle East Peace” placed an ad in the New York Times calling for Christians to lobby Washington to politically partition Jerusalem into capitals for Israel…
The question is raised frequently these days regarding the wisdom of Israel’s current prime minister in signing onto the Oslo Accords and the land-for-peace formula.
Gentile rule over Judæa began in 605 B.C. when King Jehoiakim of Judæa became a vassal of Babylon. As pictured in Daniel’s visions of the image (Dan. 2) and the four beasts (Dan. 7)…
The explosion was deafening and lit the skies over a small village in northern Israel like a giant burst of lightning. Those who rushed to the scene on a fog-shrouded winter night found the shattered…
If you believe in the Lord Jesus as your Savior, I ask you the following question: Are you a Christian American, or are you an American Christian? You may answer with some perplexity…
Intense is the only way to describe an informal discussion that took place among several young students of the Bible. The topic being discussed? The Pharisees during the time of Jesus…
The four hundred years between the prophecy of Malachi and the birth of Jesus, the Messiah, are frequently described as silent or mute years; however, they were full of activity. Although no inspired prophet appeared…
Jesus predicted that many false Christs and prophets would appear in the last days. The two beasts mentioned in Revelation 13 are the final unveiling of Jesus’ prophecy that will take place during the Great
A rabbi tells a story of his days in rabbinical school. As part of his curriculum, the professor asked his students to list the names of the ten greatest Jews of the 20th century.
The previous article in this series presented the witness of the Old Testament and Jesus Christ concerning the divine nature of the Old Testament. This article examines the testimony of Jesus Christ and the apostles…
The cabinet overwhelmingly voted [recently] to reinstate financial subsidies to all settlers by conferring “top national priority” status on the territories, amid warnings by security officials that a settlement drive could lead to confrontation…
The Bible teaches that God wants us to have joy and happiness, but if you take a good look around the little country of Israel you will discover that most of the people…
I have a good friend who served in Israel’s fledgling army during the 1948 War of Independence. He was fresh from Europe, after having successfully run the Nazi gauntlet in Poland as a disenfranchised Jewish war waif.
When Jesus stood before Caiaphas, the high priest, at His so-called trial, it marked the climax of a battle between Him and the corrupt Jewish Temple leadership that had been escalating since Jesus began His ministry.
The Roman general Pompey laid siege to Jerusalem in 63 B.C. Having made Syria a Roman province the preceding year it was now Judea’s turn to be conquered. Twelve thousand Jews died in the ensuing melee.
“What is truth?” The words rang out like the vibration of an endless sound wave echoing through the universe. Can one know the truth? Is truth the elusive goal of man’s fertile imagination?
“For he was cut off out of the land of the living; for the transgression of my people was he stricken” (Isa. 53:8).
Attempts to identify the beast of Revelation have been numerous. Throughout church history, suggested candidates have been Judas, Nero, the Pope, Hitler, Mussolini, Kennedy, Kissinger, and many others.
The previous article in this series began to present the Bible’s witness concerning its divine nature. This article provides two additional examples of that witness.
It is often joked about among Jewish people that whenever the time is set for an appointment or a date, the time specified will not be the actual time to begin.
Throughout the negotiations carried on by both the Rabin and Netanyahu governments in Israel with their Arab neighbors, a persistent question has been raised by many Christians.
“I have heard their groans and sighs, and seen their tears, and I would give every drop of blood in my veins to free them.”
There is a saying here in Israel, “What for me is allowed, for you is forbidden.” It can apply to anyone, but it particularly applies to the rabbis, who may do things that the rest…
The infamous tunnel incident in Jerusalem, which saw more than 70 people killed and scores of others wounded, shook the Middle East peace process to its very foundations. Predictably, the Western media lurched into action…
The recently divulged discovery of life on Mars captivated the attention of much of the world. With the first announcement, there was a rush of anticipation fueled by visions of little green men careening…
Christmas has never been a time of rejoicing for Jewish people. The hubbub and festivities that effervesce around the holiday seem to many Jews more like a big ball of excitement that rolls…
In every parent’s life there are those timeless moments when a newborn child nestles gently into his or her arms. With large, innocent eyes, the trusting infant looks up at its reassuring protector.
There are many misconceptions about the magi who visited Jesus. The beloved Christmas carol begins, “We three kings of Orient are,” but already it has made at least three errors.
History has bestowed on him the descriptive title, “the Great.” The primary Jewish chronicler of his period, Josephus, was the first to use the actual phrase “Herod the Great” in his Antiquities of the Jews.
Human and divine factors were involved in the writing of the inspired Scriptures. Our previous article presented the Bible’s witness concerning some aspects of its human nature. This article will begin to present the Bible’s…
Satan’s attempts to annihilate the Jewish people throughout the centuries are well documented in biblical and secular history. Demonically inspired despots like Haman and Hitler, filled with fanatical hatred, have attempted genocide of Jewish people…
A story is told of the rabbi of Nemirov. His followers, all Hasidim, stated emphatically that every night their rabbi went up to heaven. Another Jewish group, Mitnaggedim (opponents), ridiculed the Hasidim about this belief.
It is now the time of year when we Christians celebrate the Lord’s birth and gladly sing, “Joy to the world! The Lord is come.” In Israel, the people are also celebrating a holiday.
I’ve seen my share of bumper stickers—most of them many times. The one I saw recently, however, is in a class by itself. “Jesus Is Coming,” it proclaimed. “Look Busy!”…
We seem to be hearing “Thank you” less often these days, and it’s not a good sign. Some grumpy people go so far as to complain about store clerks who cheerily urge…
On May 29, 1996, an election took place in Israel that brought about a complete reversal of policy in our nation. The left-wing government of Shimon Peres, which had been in power for four years…
This statement, made by former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Perez, may have paved the way for his failure in May to be officially elected to that position.
Extraordinary diplomatic efforts in recent years have been undertaken to resolve some of the world’s most complex, divisive conflicts—in Ireland, Bosnia, and the Middle East. The latter is no closer to resolution.
The words “Allahu Akbar!” (“God is great!”) regularly resound from the mosques of the world as a confession of Islam. Those same words were shouted loudly in Arabic to a group of elderly Greek tourists…
The long interlude between the sixth and seventh trumpets is continued from chapter 10. In the last verse of that chapter, John was instructed that he must prophesy again about many peoples, tongues, and nations.
Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lᴏʀᴅ.
In a dramatic reversal, Swiss bankers have agreed to set up an independent commission with Jewish participation to determine what assets still in their banks belong to Holocaust victims.
Over the years, the Lord has taught my wife and me to have an open-door policy in our home. People are coming and going all of the time, and some even sleep here…
The ascent of Benjamin Netanyahu to the position of Prime Minister in Israel gave rise to a considerable amount of hand-wringing among international politicians, as well as liberal and anti-Israel elements in the news media.
America has once again witnessed the stomach-wrenching emotion of flag-draped coffins being carried from large Air Force cargo planes. Grieving widows and their children are told by grim-faced leaders that their loved ones did not…
I have never been one to scrupulously follow a recipe. A pinch of substitution here, a dash of elimination there—it all suits me fine as long as it turns out edible.
Growing up Jewish in my family guaranteed that buying chicken would be an unusual experience. Instead of going to the supermarket like everyone else in my neighborhood, we went to the shochet…
Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.
It has become quite fashionable among some feminist writers and people sympathetic to the women’s liberation movement to castigate biblical writers for their “sexism.” Often biblical authors have been characterized as “male chauvinists”…
When the Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost, it indwelt each member of that small group of believers in Jerusalem, including the women. Among them were Jesus’ mother Mary and the other…
In the previous article, which presented the biblical view of inspiration, we saw that both human and divine factors were involved in the writing of the inspired Scriptures. This means that the Bible…