Leadership in the Army is provided by commissioned officers who are ordained ministers of religion. Salvation Army officers were not always regarded as ordained, but in the Army modified the commissioning ceremony to "emphasise the fact that Salvation Army officers are ordained ministers of Christ and His gospel.
The Army does not make a sharp division between sacred and secular - all believers are members of the priesthood - and it believes that all soldiers could theoretically carry out any ministry that an officer could, except where secular law rules otherwise. However the Army recognises that some individuals are called to particular types of ministry, and acknowledges this by commissioning some soldiers as officers to take on the ministries of preaching, evangelisation or administration, and to exercise authority within the church.
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This division has never inhibited Salvationists from giving their all; the Army does not have an active clergy and a passive laity - it operates as a combined and effective spiritual force. Some distinguished Salvationists were never commissioned as officers, including Booth's wife Catherine, and the early Salvation Army activist, George Railton. Salvationists accepted to become officers receive two years' residential training.
At the end of the training period, cadets sign a covenant with God and The Salvation Army in private. This is followed by a public ceremony in which they are ordained, commissioned and appointed as ministers of the church. The world is divided into zonal territories, which are themselves divided into smaller, usually national, areas. Leadership within a territory is delegated by the General to a territorial commander appointed by him. The administration of Salvation Army work in the UK and Ireland is further devolved to 18 divisional headquarters.
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These are purely symbols - Salvationists do not regard them as sacred, but they treat them with great respect. The flag consists of a blue border surrounding a red background, in the centre of which is a yellow star. The flag bears the Army's motto 'Blood and Fire'. The mercy seat is found in every Salvation Army meeting hall. It's a bench at the front where people can kneel. When a person decides to become a Christian they often make a public commitment by kneeling at the mercy seat during worship.
However it is important to realise that the act at the mercy seat is a public statement that God has changed something in the believer's soul; it does not itself make any change in the believer. People who are already Christians also kneel at the mercy seat, either as a public demonstration that they are re-dedicating themselves to God, or in order to pray in a special way about a particular decision or problem affecting their lives.
The mercy seat is a very old idea, found first in the Old Testament, where it was the holy place where God's presence was believed to be and where he communicated with his people. Salvationists do not believe that the mercy seat is a piece of furniture with special spiritual properties; whenever and wherever a person meets in spirit with God, that is a 'mercy seat'. A soldier has plain black or blue epaulets. Local officers are indicated by the initials on the sleeve of their uniform, eg CT - corps treasurer, YPSM - young people's sergeant-major.
The Salvation Army does not have a christening ceremony - children undergo a ceremony of dedication instead. In this ceremony parents thank God for the gift of their child and promise to provide a Christian upbringing. Salvationist parents also promise to bring up the child in a Salvationist lifestyle and with Salvationist standards.
The officer conducting the ceremony reminds the parents of the promises they are making and they agree to keep them. The promises are to care for the child and protect her or him from harmful things as far as possible. The officer then takes the child in his or her arms and, praying for the child by its full name, asks God to bless the child and guide the family. People in the congregation are asked to encourage and help the child as he or she grows up. After the prayer, the child is given back to the parents. A dedication certificate is presented and the dedication register is signed.
Children can become junior soldiers from the age of seven. They sign a simple statement that they love God and have asked to be forgiven for their sins. They promise to try to follow the example of Jesus. A short course of Christian teaching is given. At a simple ceremony the child receives a badge and certificate of acceptance. This initiates a person as a full soldier in the Salvation Army. It can take place at any time after the age of fifteen. The Salvationist wedding ceremony is very similar to any church wedding, but with some unique Salvation Army additions.
One question frequently asked is "who can Salvationists marry? Salvationists don't have to get married to other Salvationists but very often they do ; they don't even have to marry other Christians although they almost always do. In earlier days Salvation Army officers were only allowed to marry other officers if they wanted to continue their work.
This is now changing and Salvation Army officers have more freedom in their choice of partner. However this will make little practical difference, as officers often choose to live out their ministry as a husband and wife partnership. Salvationists believe that when the physical body dies, the soul or spirit continues to exist in another dimension. This new dimension could be Heaven or 'glory' in which God is present, or hell which is the absence of God. Salvationist believe that those who have accepted God will go to Heaven, and so they use the phrase "Promotion to Glory" to refer to the death of a Christian.
Salvation Army funerals have an atmosphere of joy and hope, since despite the sadness of losing a family member, friend or colleague, there is joy in the belief that the dead person is happy in a new existence with God. So instead of black the Army's funeral colour is white, and the flags which are walked to the graveside are draped with white ribbons. Salvationists regard their whole life and being as an act of worship, but, of course, they meet regularly for worship. Salvation Army meetings are open to anyone - you don't have to be a Salvationist or even a Christian to attend.
Meetings don't have a set order of service. They usually include plenty of hymns and songs, and there may be group or individual music items. Occasionally a dance or drama group may be used to help with the worship. Verses from the Bible are read in every meeting. Music may be provided by the local Salvation Army band or by the choir who are called the 'Songsters'. An officer usually leads the meeting and gives the 'address' sermon , but other people can do both or may be invited to take part by praying, reading out verses of hymns or from the Bible, or by giving 'testimonies' in which they talk about their experience of God.
Music has been important to the Army from its early days, when it was a powerful evangelical tool; not just to attract a crowd to hear the preacher, but as a way of helping people to experience faith in a more embracing way than words could on their own. The Salvation Army is famous for its works to help the poor and needy. Members pride themselves on being "doers of the word and not hearers only" and emphasise rolling up their sleeves and getting on with it. The Salvation Army helps believers and non-believers equally. Practical care is never offered - or refused - on the basis of belief.
The Army hopes that those it helps will become Christians, but it doesn't require them to do so. The Army's social work is a religious activity. Members of the Army are inspired by their belief in a loving and caring God to show their love for humanity and their practical response to human need. In this they follow the teachings of Jesus. I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was in prison and you came to see me.
The Salvation Army sees no conflict between spiritual and social ministry. It seeks to serve people so as to satisfy both the spiritual and social dimensions of their needs. The Army believes that this approach shows the very essence of the Gospel. The Salvation Army works to change structures in society that perpetuate economic injustice. For example, the Salvation Army campaigned against government proposals to increase the opportunities for gambling.
William Booth believed that fighting for social change was vital to achieve his vision. When speaking his social work plan, he often used the metaphor of an ambulance at the foot of the precipice of human failure, noting that he also intended to erect a fence at the top. The Salvation Army has a tradition of not giving up on anyone.
Members believe that however low a person has sunk God continues to love them, and that God's grace can redeem anyone. In the UK alone, the Salvation Army has 50 centres which help people without homes and provide over 3, beds. They are full almost every night. The ultimate aim of the programme is to help homeless people to live independently in homes of their own, and all the centres have case workers and resettlement workers to help their clients achieve this. The Army doesn't just provide beds: The Salvation Army also organises soup runs in city areas.
In London, the Salvation Army's Eagle Project co-ordinates an extensive soup run provision and many other volunteer-based activities. The Salvation Army has 60 social programme centres which provide residential accommodation and rehabilitation for people with substance misuse problems. These are part of the National Addiction Service. The Army has created an integrated, nationwide monitoring scheme providing a unique epidemiological profile of alcohol and drug taking in the UK.
As well as the over Senior and Junior Youth Clubs run by Salvation Army corps around the country there are a number of specialist initiatives:. This is a church based youth project operating in an area where high unemployment leads to high crime, illegal drug use and low morale amongst residents. The project involves Christian workers moving into the area to live and work alongside local young people as positive role models in the community. This fellowship has about 1, members and works to works to cultivate a right attitude between the public and people with mental or physical disabilities and their families.
The majority of prisons in the UK receive regular visits from a Salvation Army chaplain. The Salvation Army Care and Support for Prisoners' Families Group offers practical and spiritual support by visiting families of prisoners, assessing needs and trying to help. The Salvation Army maintains a number of purpose-built emergency mobile units which are equipped with resources which would be needed at a major incident such as a fire, flood, bombing, chemical incident, train or plane crash. This service was established as long ago as The aim is to restore or to sustain family relationships by locating relatives who for various reasons a deliberate break or otherwise have become out of touch.
Over 20, family members now enjoy restored relationships as a result of enquiries carried out by the Family Tracing Service in the UK. Salvationists are generally conservative in their ethical thinking. Since the Army devotes much of its energy to working in difficult social and ethical areas it is able to claim that its ethical doctrines are tested in practice every minute of every day. All Salvationist ethics rely on Jesus for their authority.
Their essence is captured in phrases like 'following Jesus' and 'the imitation of Christ'. I will uphold Christian integrity in every area of my life, allowing nothing in thought, word or deed that is unworthy, unclean, untrue, profane, dishonest or immoral. I will maintain Christian ideals in all my relationships with others; my family and neighbours, my colleagues and fellow salvationists, those to whom and for whom I am responsible, and the wider community.
I will uphold the sanctity of marriage and of family life. Their disobedience does not cancel the Covenant but it does remove from them the privilege of enjoying its benefits. Thus rebellion does not take from them possession of the land but loss of domicile! The privilege of living on it! This is the warning of the Torah and the abiding lesson of the Major and Minor Prophets. This is why God always warns them but at the same time encourages them with restoration and blessing if they obey Amos9: It is thus not biblical to suggest in any way that the Abrahamic Covenant has been abolished or reconstructed and equally, it is not biblical to assert that the Jewish people can live on all the land promised to them without reference to their spiritual condition.
It is at this point that many Christian Zionists fail and that many of those opposing Christian Zionism fail! As a nation, Israel remains in rebellion against Jesus of Nazareth and this factor has more to do with her present struggle than we are prepared to admit! God loves all people the same. Christians always lack balance and opt for one or the other extreme when it comes to Israel. In short the existence of Israel reveals and challenges the existence of the devil.
All peoples of the world are held accountable by God for collaborating with this wickedness. That is, the powers of darkness are convinced that they can frustrate the purpose of God for world redemption by liquidating the nation of Israel. However, it is also true, as we have noted, that her rebellion against God has also been at the root of her troubles and still is! The God of the Bible keeps His promises! A process of conflict and struggle in the land, according to scripture, will remove unbelief from Israel.
In other words, no matter how you cut it, history ends with the Jewish people back in the land of Canaan and indeed in Jerusalem. We of all people must care for all people while not denying the purpose of God in the Abrahamic Covenant. Paul demonstrates, time and time again, that our theology must have a practical outworking. Even this meeting has to be challenged by this notion.
This is a delusion! What are we doing for the poor, the brokenhearted, the voiceless and the weak of this world? He and his colleagues published their findings in Nature, a British science journal. This new genetic research shows the vast majority of kohanim, the Jewish priestly class, to be descended from a single ancestor-scientific confirmation of an oral tradition passed down through 3, years. This genetic evidence was found in kohanim from both the Ashkenazi European and the Sephardi Spanish and Middle Eastern branches of the worldwide Jewish population.
This is a strong proof that the Aaronic priesthood existed in the distant past as the Bible relates. This provides fascinating evidence that the Jewish priesthood predated the division of the Jewish people into the Ashkenazi and the Sephardi branches, these two major ethnic groups, which occurred approximately a 1, years ago during the Middle Ages.
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The researchers' concluded that the tradition of the Jewish priesthood kehunah , has a genetic basis that does point to a single ancestor - possibly Aaron. David Goldstein, an expert in the field of evolutionary genetics at Oxford University, stated: This is the first time ever we have been able to make a correlation with the ethnographic record over this time scale. Some people keep records that go back three, maybe four generations. Since Ishmael is his seed, they too have the right to the land of Israel. To whom was the promise of the land made? To Abraham and his seed, no exceptions [Genesis Thus now, even from the Bible, the Arabs are included in the promise".
God uses the word "My" in two connections: In each case He, in a particular way, identifies Himself with them: The whole land of Canaan where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you and I will be their God. God promises to give the whole land to Abraham and his descendants for an everlasting possession. This is established by a covenant of God and God declares in Psalm But to which of his descendants? Chapman tries in his book to connect the land by Ishmael since he is a descendant of Abraham. The Bible clearly puts to rest the issue when God told Isaac: I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth shall be blessed.
Yet later on, God restricts the same promise to Jacob Israel alone: Notice that the promise runs through a certain, specific line - from Abraham to Isaac to Jacob and on to their descendants.
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In Psalm the psalmist uses the following terms to describe the extent of God's commitment to this purpose: There is no language used in the Bible that could give stronger emphasis to God's commitment. He remembers His covenant forever, the Word He commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant He made with Abraham, the oath He swore to Isaac, He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant: So all three connect, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob Israel forever.
The word "everlasting" makes null and void any other claim to the land. To say that the land is no more an issue is in contradiction to God's word regardless how angry people get over God's decision.
If we believe the Bible to be the Word of God, there can remain no doubt as to God's purpose for the land. Furthermore, nothing has changed in God's purpose from the time that it was spoken until this time of restoration which was predicted by Jeremiah: The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will bring My people, Israel and Judah, back from captivity and restore them to the land I gave their forefathers to possess, says the Lord.
While if we look at the context of scripture, we can easily see who this seed is: I said, 'You are my servant; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. By this we know that the seed of Abraham is meant Jacob, and the land is Israel, as it is exactly mentioned and fulfilled by most of the Biblical Prophecy in both Old and New Testaments. If Ishmael's promoters way of confused argumentation is accepted, Jesus the seed of promise can end up being an Ishmaelite, since God told Abraham concerning the Messianic blessing that out of his seed the whole world will be blessed Gen Yet ignorance of scripture is not an excuse with God, since the rest of scripture as we presented directs us to the rest of the story as to whom this seed will be.
The same way the promises of the land in the Abrahamic Covenant is strictly given to Jacob who was later called Israel. I don't need to quote more verses here, since the entire Bible is written with this promise in God's mind. The Bible concentrates on Israel as the Chosen Nation, the repository of the Covenants, the channel of the Messianic Hope, the custodian of the divinely approved Temple, the keeper of the oracles of God, and the capital nation of the returning crucified and risen King of Kings. Thus page after page, book after book in the Old and New Testaments deal with these issues that mean little or nothing to world powers or historians.
Israel is the central theme of the Bible. Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, to which they are gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land Ezek. So these promises of land and return clearly involves Israel not Ishmael. The question is why are these Christians trying to fit the Bible to match Muslim claims?
Even a book like the Quran was vague as to who was the child of promise was, but the Bible was so clear it left no doubt. The only doubt is left, are what the false seeds Replacement Theology are trying to plant. The statement by Pope John Paul II that the "shepherds of Bethlehem" when Christianity was founded, years ago, were the "ancestors" of today's Palestinian Arabs was false. In fact, those shepherds were Jews, not Arabs. In page , Mr. At first, in Christian theology Jesus is author of all scripture and everything created: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
We cannot isolate Jesus first mission redemption from the rest of scripture concluding that God did away with the rest of scripture fulfillment. Israel will be His focus prior to and after His second coming written in much detail. This is so obvious in every verse and every prophecy: Was not Christ to rule Israel Matthew 2: So when Christ is to rule Israel in this verse were would Israel be? This "two fold" prophecy with the rule over Israel part is obviously of His second coming with Israel in the land.
Even the Replacement Theology advocates would agree that this is a two fold prophecy, yet they will not accept the "other" "two fold" prophecies? Another "two fold" prophecy. Obviously when Jesus says "until the Son of Man comes" pertains to His "second" coming since He is there talking to them. How is it then the believers will not "finish going through" until "The Son of Man comes"?
And who is He telling them to witness to? None other than Jews "But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And what where is Israel before "The Son of Man comes"? What did Jesus tell the Jews of their Disapora? Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
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For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Jesus was talking to them of Jerusalem while He was in Jerusalem, and He will not return to establish the Kingdom unless they are in Jerusalem crying "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord". This return to Israel with Jews in it, is emphasized by every prophet in the Old Testament and all the way into the Book of Revelation. Where is Israel being judged in this verse?
And where will His glorious Throne be? Christ and the disciples will rule over the 12 tribes of Israel in the restoration. Thus, Israel has not been forgotten in God's plan. To add confusion to his readers Mr. Chapman on the next page states regarding Luke's testimony "we had hoped that he[Christ] was the one who was going to redeem Israel" Luke How could a return be null and void when Christ spoke of predictions about the future of Jerusalem: While Replacement Theology advocates claim that the "fullness of the Gentiles" is the end of Israel, Christ clearly made this verse plain that a Jewish rule non-Gentile is what is destined for Israel.
Any attempt to make this fit the Church of Replacement Theology requires surgical procedures to scripture which will prove fatal to whomever tries it. Let's look at the context of the verse in Luke Jesus is speaking concerning Jerusalem and Israel, it's destruction, desolation, Diaspora, and return. The part the author ignores is the previous verse, in context we can see clearly: This is confirmed leaving no doubt in Romans: And so all Israel shall be saved: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
This national redemption is confirmed perfectly when the Times of the Gentiles is fulfilled. Reading the passage in context and the previous verse in Romans 11 sheds much light here. Jesus is giving them the 'full' picture, He is showing them the 'full circle' of events in one single sentence; fall, desolation, Diaspora, then Return. This "full circle" scenario is strictly and only for Israel and the Jewish people. The Gentile world will end in judgment, Joel chapter 3 is strictly over Israel and it's division. The problems such writers get into concluding that Jesus was "silent about the future of the land", is isolation of verses from the context of scripture, when the simple truth is that Christ on His first coming came to die for sins as concluded by the author himself.
Jesus instructed His disciples to "go only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel" and He reminded a Gentile that "Salvation is through the Jews" John 4: Subsequently, however, it became evident that salvation was designed for all mankind, beginning from Jerusalem. Yet much emphasis was made on salvation by no means negates the many other references of His second coming were the land is mentioned. Isolating scripture is like looking at one piece of a puzzle were only a piece of a cardboard is seen. The excitement is found when we put everything together.
Colin Chapman in his book "Whose Promised Land" instead of shedding light attempts to shuffle different issues together to make his point stick, his obvious mixing between "The Kingdom of Heaven" and the Restoration of the Jews to Israel is obvious. On page he compares Matthew 8: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west; I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: Chapman argues that these verses speak of the same event "The Kingdom of Heaven".
So he argues that the usage of Isaiah speaking of Israel's return is invalid since the two verses are in perfect harmony. Matthew speaks of the "many" while Isaiah strictly speaks of Jacob's "seed" Israel, but by combining the two an attempt is made to twist scripture to make a return only of the believers in the Kingdom of Heaven and ignoring Israel's return before God sanctifies her.
According to Matt 13 the present gospel age represents the mystery form of the kingdom since the kingdom of heaven is no other then the rule of God on Earth When the Lord shall build up Zion he shall appear in his glory This shall be written for the generation to come To declare the name of the Lord in Zion, and his praise in Jerusalem When the people are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the Lord"' Psalm Here the Lord Christ build up[the land of] Zion, He shall appear in His glory[The Kingdom, second coming], while the kingdoms[the world] come and serve the Lord in Jerusalem.
In light of this verse and many others, the author of "Whose Promised Land" continues: The Bible already fulfilled the desolation and return of the Jews after the Babylonian Captivity. The claims many modern interpreters make of the recent establishment of the state of Israel have no foundation in the Bible since all the prophecies they use pertain to the return after the Babylonian captivity after which there will be a Diaspora with no return, therby this modern state is not biblical.
The "common" view held by the majority of today's world who stand against the recent establishment of the state of Israel is as it has been in the past the view which had more support since Israel's first entrance as slaves from Egypt, and their second entrance from Babylon were not popular either.
God calls Israel specifically "My Land". Above all other pieces of territory in the earth God has laid a special claim, for His sovereign purposes, to that little strip of territory which is Israel. In Ezekiel He warns the northern invader: In days to come, O Gog, I will bring you against My land so that the nations may know Me when I show Myself holy through you before their eyes.
While the "Gog and Magog" prophecy is agreed by most scholars as have not yet happened and will occur in the End Times proving that Israel must be in the land prior to the fulfillment of this prophecy. This prophecy and many others which has not happened assure every Bible believers that Israel WILL have another return before the end. In the "Gog and Magog" prophecy Israel is described as: The same points can be made from this verse, and an additional important factor "The division of the land" which is taking place currently after Oslo Peace Accord.
These prophecies are so clear and plain that they leave little or no room for questions. To show how absurd the doubters of these prophecies are an example of such a book "Whose Promised Land" by Colin Chapman, on page , he provides the "Scholars interpretation of the land", in it he shares allegoric interpretation by a certain philosopher-theologian Philo who allegorizes the prophecies about Israel's final re-gathering to the land of Israel and changes the meaning to "promised land" to "fruitful wisdom".
At first we ask, where in the Bible that God intended that certain scholars interpret scripture? Also, since there are many scholars who give opposing views on this issue, what makes this one the correct interpretation? We are not saying that we don't need scholars. What we are saying is that we need to weed through and sift carefully what certain scholars write.
Today we even have scholars who deny the holocaust ever existed and many believe them and follow such absurd teaching. Here is a scenario which presents a problem. Assume that we are living in the time of Christ, and we are to adhere to common interpretation of Messianic prophecies believed by the masses at the time of Christ, one of which that Messiah in His first coming must establish Himself to be a king over Israel.
This was a "common" interpretation by many Rabbinical schools which even caused the Romans to fix a sign on the cross as "Jesus King of the Jews". Yet many viewed the plain scripture in light of "occurring events" and accepted Jesus as Messiah while the majority followed the "flawed common interpretation". Replacement Theology advocates do believe that these "few" and "less common" ideas who saw in Jesus the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecies for His first coming were correct, as to them Jesus was the Messiah, and if today's anti-Israel advocates were living at the time, they too would re-interpret scripture according to new findings that Jesus came, and His coming shed new light on the meaning of the Messianic verses.
Today these advocates agree with pro-Israel advocates on the interpretation of the Messianic prophecies despite the many rabbinical schools errors. Why not then open there minds to the Christian Zionist understanding of scripture? Facts and new findings should always be studied and compared with scripture.
God reveals to us in His own timing His plan on how certain prophecies are to be fulfilled. So to say that we must stick with "old" and "common" interpretation is in opposition to the reasoning of Replacement Theology advocates, since they too agree that at times the "common" interpretations of the "expert" San Hadrian schools were wrong, for they should have seen that Messiah came first to die for sin, then come again at a later time to be king and defeat the enemies of Israel as the Bible described.
Why cannot they see that there will be two Diasporas after they have established Israel and two re-gatherings? The Jews on the other hand would be re-gathered in unbelief at first, then later would be on His second coming redeemed, which is obvious in scripture. Why then not use the same logic to interpret Messianic prophecies when looking at Israel?
Why not look at the Bible in light of occuring events? Is it possible the many have been wrongly interpreting Israel? Is it possible that the Jew after the Holocaust decide after almost being totally anihilated to rise to power, come to Israel 2 years later just in order to make the Bible fit their wishes? Did Israel fulfill these on purpose? Hardly likely in light of the historic fact that the Jews were almost anihilated from the face of the Earth. Bible Prophecy was sent by God without side interpretation or even scholarly interpretation, it was intended to be interpreted as it said it should, firstly by the Bible itself with cross referencing of the events and teachings, also by the fulfillments: So the "latter end of them" would be the fulfillment, since we cannot see how God will fulfill prophecy we must wait and see, if the predictions ever come to pass then we know that it was God's will, it is only then that we see how exactly the plan of God is carried out.
In order to see the full picture, one must look at a chapter or two. In the following we will examine Zechariah 12 and The nations of the world will surround Jerusalem: And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: How could we have governors of Judah unless we have Israel in the land?
The Gentiles will come against the Jews in a final showdown, yet again, and against all odds the Jew will be triumphant: And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: The "Lord" who was "pierced" verse 10 , will fight for Judah. When has the Lord who was pierced fought for Judah in a battle? This is obviously His second coming, and obviously when Israel will be in the land.
Then Christ will pour upon Israel His Holy Spirit and has mercy on them, thus a national redemption to Israel is fulfilled. Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
The pierced Messiah will have the signs left on His hands, Israel wonders of these wounds. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
In this battle there will be some losses for Israel, rape, pillage, and half Jerusalem will be taken. The World's mock trial and the sinister plots finally culminate in an attempt to execute the world's scapegoat. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
When did the Lord have feet? Christ in the flesh at His second coming will defend Israel and assure it's right to the land and it's eternal existence, in fact Christ comes to the aid of Israel to fulfill His promise: And here is the final blow to any who argue the Biblical support of Israel's restoration from the Babylonian captivity as the only biblically supported re-gathering.
At which regathering is Israel promised never to be scattered? This is the dilemma of the nations, several wars and Israel winning against all odds, even when the whole world goes against her, the plans will be destroyed when God Christ Himself intervenes. These verses and tens others have been ignored by the author, on page Zechariah is skipped over with no mention of Messiah's defense for Israel, and on page the author on a section "Hope for the Nation" with no verses or references to anything in Zechariah or even to anything in scripture concluded his own summary what the prophets said, Chapman commented "Would these promises ever be fulfilled?
If so, when and how? The sound of doubts and empty hope "If so" causes confusion not edification of the Body of Christ, especially when on page the author even puts doubt on the authenticity of the book of Isaiah "Whether the rest of the book[Isaiah] chapter was written by the same writer or by a later writer during the exile", which is a whole other discussion usually taken by liberals, atheists, and agnostics who argue that Isaiah was not even the author. This accusation was shattered, especially when the Dead Sea Scrolls revealed that the book of Isaiah had not even a break between the alleged "two Isaiahs".
An issue hardly deserves the recommendation of Christianity Today on the back of the cover. Indeed one wonders the degree of the Churches fall to support this? On page , the author only references Ezekiel with scattered comments and half sentences ignoring much truth that opposes his views: I will settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: First a re-gathering to the land, then a re-gathering back to God "know that I am the Lord".
This is "re-gathering" in unbelief is confirmed in another verse: For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. THEN will I sprinkle clean water upon you A new heart also will I give you God gathers Israel for His glory first then to sanctify them.
And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries and will bring them to their own land. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys and all the inhabited places of the country. And they shall no longer be a prey to the nations. Nor shall other lands devour them. But they shall dwell safely and no one shall make them afraid. God will feed them "on the mountains of Israel" and they "shall no longer be a prey to the nations[Gentiles] Nor shall other lands devour them. Is it not true that Israel for two millennia were a "prey" to the Gentiles?
How can we exchange Israel to be the Church and make sense of these verses? And again in Ezekiel Then the nations which are left all around you shall know that I the LORD have rebuilt the ruined places and planted what was desolate. In light of these presented evidence, this should make a turn in this case of whose promised land?
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As a closing statement that could end any arguments a crucial question could be asked: Where in scripture has the land been given to eventually be controled by the mixed multitudes of the Palestinians? If only this question is answered, this would end this discussion forever. I have rarely read publications discussing one of the most important verses regarding the rebirth of Israel and it's struggle with her enemies, yet this prophecy is generally ignored.
The Arab Allies gather to destroy Israel as soon as it's born. This destruction announced by president Nasser of Egypt who declared, "Our basic goal is the destruction of Israel". Azaam Pasha, secretary-general of he Arab League announced, "This will be a war of extermination and momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the mongolian massacres and Crusades.
Edom, Moab, Ammon, children of Lot: Currently Jordan and the Jordanian people children of Lot. Current location in Lebanon 25 miles N of Beirut Unger, p The inhabitants of Tyre: Currently the People of Lebanon. The reference to "The people of Tyre", instead of using "Tyre", is likely because Tyre would have been completly destroyed as prophecied in Ezekiel 26, but the inhabitants still living in what is called today Lebanon. Gaza, Ekron, Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Gath. This prophecy uses either the name of location or the name of a people, since certain people moved, and other mixed occupy certain nations.
If a nation is mentioned the prophecy could have intended to focus on whatever peoples who occupy that land, and if a people are mentioned would include whatever lands they currently occupy today. The usage of "They have said" and "us" refers to the confederacy of nations united in one voice. It is a remider of the Arab outcry to throw the Jews in the Medditerranean Sea. To "cut off" in Biblical terms is to destroy. The evidence of this prophecy being the War is most amazing. The appeal that God makes to the enemies of Israel is not one of hate, as it is an appeal to these nations to reconcile with God and recognize His authority and will "That they may seek Your name O Lord" 16 "That men may know that You [The God of Israel], whose name alone is the Lord" Our enemies encompassed us about, yea they encompassed us about and arose to destroy us as a people.
Yet has their counsel been destroyed and their schemes will not be accomplished. While I was a young boy in Jericho, I still remember The American Council came from Jerusalem just as they had information on a major war about to erupt. They started to evacuate all the Americans in the area, since my mother was an American, they came to the rescue, but my father refused and had to turn them down because he loved his country.
This was a great disappointment to Arabs and Muslims worldwide. I still remember many things during the war; the thunder of the bombs and chatter of machine guns that went on day and night for six days. Many Arab citizens in Jericho started looting stores and houses as people ran and crossed the Jordan river from fear of the Israelis. The Israeli soldiers announced that everyone post a white flag on it's gate. The war was called the six day war because it was won in six days and on the seventh day a Rabbi by the name of Goren blew the ram's horn on the wailing wall in Jerusalem declaring the victory.
Many see this as a parallel to Joshua when he went around the walls of Jericho six times, then on the seventh day seven times, and on that day the priests blew the trumpets and everyone shouted with one voice, then the walls came tumbling down, and the Israelites took the city. To my father it seemed that the walls have tumbled down on him, during the war he was always listening to the Jordanian radio station, he used to say that the Arabs are wining the war, but he was listening to the wrong station, the Israeli station who was announcing the truth of their soon coming victory, instead my father chose to believe the Arabs who claimed that the Israelis are promoting propaganda.
The Arabs have been loosing the wars against Israel exactly as the Bible prophesied in the examples I have shown. O resistance, the Jordanian black September civil war, the bloody wars in Lebanon, and the war of Yom Kippur, with more blood spilt among ourselves and with no hope to destroy Israel. All these losses and we still hoped for that one victory since that is all what it takes to destroy them.
Many Muslims in the land claim that Israel is God's punishment to them for allowing bad government to rule the Islamic world. That is one reason why we see attempts to topple Governments with majority Muslim population. The Islamic world is on its way to try to destroy Israel. The best way to prove this is to quote the Syrian president Hafez Asad: All we need to defeat Israel is One".
The God of Israel promised "and they shall not be pulled up", yet the Arab and Muslim world will try again. God in the Bible promised that they will fail. God's promises never changes, and he fulfills them to the letter. Arabs think that the God of the Bible is biased towards the Jews, but we can't avoid the many verses of punishment declared on Israel in the Bible; After rejecting Christ the great "Diaspora" started and they were scattered into all the earth, separated from their homeland, and far from Jerusalem. God allowed them to be killed and tormented more than any other people in the world.
No other people in history tasted the agony of war and pain more than the Jews, they have been in known in history to be the refugees of the world, today they are finally home with very angry neighbours Al-Bushra Website, an Arab Christian view. Colin Chapman in "Whose Promised Land" ignores the most important factor of Jewish persecution by the Arabs and Muslims and includes only the persecution of the Jews in Europe, leaving the hands of the Arabs and Muslims cleaner than Pontius Pilate's after the judgment of Christ.
In fact he concludes his closing arguments by stating: Is one view right and the other wrong? This type of representation would be half of the truth, in fact it is even a mock trial where the evidence for a murder case is ignored allowing the defendant to go scot-free, also the study that was presented was concerning the Arabs and Jews and the question over the land. But since he brought up right or wrong, we must present the missing facts. While what we will present here is a tiny glimpse of the full picture, all the centuries of persecution culminated with the Arabs forcing the Jews to leave between and and after centuries of persecution by the Arabs towards the Jews.
In fact one can fill pages on the persecution of Arabs towards the Jews way before The supposed golden age for Jews living under Islamic and Arab rule is in reality plagued with death, torture, expulsion, rape, slavery, annihilation, and extradition of mass proportions. To say that it was only the immigration of Jews to Palestine was the cause of these persecutions is an excuse. Much of the persecution that went on in Arab nations had much of it's influence from Islam and Nazi Germany as we shall see: Common Arab opinion "Arabs as Semites cannot possibly be anti-Semitic.
This, however, is a semantic distortion that ignores the reality of Arab discrimination and hostility toward Jews. Arabs, like any other people, can indeed be anti-Semitic. Jews were no strangers to persecution and humiliation among the Arabs and Muslim nations, Princeton University historian Bernard Lewis wrote: Throughout the centuries, the Jew suffered under the "Omar Charter" which declared: The method of sealing is to bind the necks of the person with a collar, in it is a piece of led, stamped on it the amount of his payment, the collar is not to be broken until the payment is completed.
This is in accordance to the Quranic verse 'Until they pay the Jezzieh by an upper hand, may they be subjugated humiliated ' And if the person was a Jew, he must wear on his shoulder a red or yellow banner, so he is recognized as a Jew. And if the person is a Christian, he needs to wear harsh clothes, with a large pocket in the chest area like women. As for Christian women, they must wear shoes with different colors, one black and the other white. And if a Jew or a Christian goes into a public bath, he must wear an iron, copper, or lead made collar around his neck so he can be identified from Muslims.
Never a Jew or a Christian can build houses higher than a Muslim. They are not to crowed public roads but need to use narrow alley ways, and small streets. They are not to be saluted, nor their graves can be extended beyond the surface of the ground". Much of the Islamic success and its prosperity is to be credited to the Eastern Jews. It was the oppressed Persian Jews who helped the Muslims to subdue and conquer the Persians.
The relationship between the Jews and the Muslims was constantly changing. At the time of Al-Mutawakil, in the beginning of the eighth century, was very hard upon the Jews and Christians alike. He was a persecutor of the Jews and Christians. The Muslim Caliph Al-Mamun , He and the rest of the Muslim rulers knew how much from all that they desired could be learned from the Jews in their midst. Jewish physicians, teachers, and merchants became quite the fashion.
Fleets of trading vessels commanded by Jewish captains were sailing in the Mediterranean. In the beginning of the Ninth century the Jews called the Gaonim contributed many scholars and schools, the Bible was translated for the first time into Arabic by a Jew, Saadia ben Joseph Rabbi Menachim ben Saruk, compiled and completed the first Bible dictionary.
The Gaonim schools flourished until A. Hai was the last of the Gaonim when the Caliph got jealous of the wealth of the Gaonim, he made up some false charges and imprisoned Hai and his father, and confiscated their wealth. Hai escaped, and a little later, the last attempt was made to reconstruct the Gaonim schools failed by a Hezekiah.
The last Gaonim was executed by the order of the Caliph. All Jewish schools were closed, and the scholars were scattered. Palestine and the whole of the Byzantine Empire became almost deserted by Jews. As distinguished Orientalist G. But it would again not be difficult to compile a lengthy list of persecutions, arbitrary confiscations, attempted forced conversions, or pogroms.
The attitude of the Muslims toward the Christians and the Jews is that of a master towards slaves, whom he treats with a certain lordly tolerance so long as they keep their place. Any sign of pretension to equality is promptly repressed. Middle Eastern Studies, , p. Muslims didn't do anything on this issue. It's the doing of Hitler who hated the Jews,". Anyway, they hate them just about everywhere.
And way before him, little is known that in many Arab and Islamic countries Jews were forced to wear distinctive clothing and even a "yellow badge" on their shoulders. In the ninth century, for example, Baghdad's Caliph Al-Mutawakkil designated a yellow badge for Jews, setting a precedent that would be followed centuries later in Nazi Germany. The facts are that such systems were not an invention that started in Germany's Nazi era. Jews need to wear an identifiable mark on their clothing to identify them as Jews.
The star of David for an identification with the word Jude on the chest. A yellow banner is to be fixed around the shoulder or arm, as to be recognized as a Jew. They must live in the Jewish Ghettos. For Jews, a yellow banner is to be fixed around the shoulder or arm, as to be recognized as a Jew. Omar Charter, Faqeeh Al-Muluk, volume 2, pages Jews are not admitted to serve in the army or navy.