This is usually the time of the year when I post a “Year In Review”, looking retrospectively at the last twelve months with respect to antisemitism, Bible prophecy and Israel. Unfortunately for us all, over the last two decades, I have not lacked stories to tell, lies to expose and truth to teach. Is 2023 any different from the previous years and is it significant for our civilization? The answer can be found in the events of October 7, 2023, when Hamas committed the brutal murder of 1,200 Israelis in one day (the highest Jewish death toll since the Holocaust.) and took over 200 hostages into Gaza. October 7 was not just a terrible terrorist attack in Israel, but it was an existential attack on Western civilization.
Some sixty years ago, Yasir Arafat, the Egyptian-born leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, started planting the seeds of historical revisionism in the Middle East. His then farfetched approach to the Palestinian people being refugees in their Israel-occupied land didn’t take root immediately, but the seed was planted. It has been watered by liberalism and an increasingly Marxist-leaning left faction. Additionally, it is being fertilized by post-modern social justice militants around the globe. Fast forward to 2023 in the Middle East and the rest of the world by proxy and the roles of victims and perpetrators have been switched. This reverse narrative founded on lies and historical revisionism has now fully blossomed and the world is buying it…No questions asked. The result is an exponential hatred of Israel and by proxy, the rest of the Jewish people in the entire Diaspora. Historically, this is yet another conflict in the Middle East, but biblically, it is one of the last few bricks in the foundational wall of the end times!
The world is currently being conditioned for the final chapter of HIStory before the return of the Messiah to establish His Millennial Kingdom, and just as the Bible predicted, it will all hinge around Israel and Jerusalem (Zechariah 12; Ezekiel 36-38.) But really, is Zechariah 12:3, “It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it”, to be taken literally? Of course, it is! We should be concerned and heavily burdened for the Jewish people but not surprised. Keep in mind that if Zechariah 12:3 is to be taken literally, 12:9 also is, “And in that day I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” Is the world truly guilty of willful ignorance?
Are all the nations going after the Jewish people, or am I a conspiracy theorist seeking cheap validation from the world? After all, maybe the way that people are looking at the Hamas/Israel war is accurate, and I am biased toward my own people. Or is it possible that the world is again joining the bystanders of yesteryear and looking the other way while Jewish people have been slaughtered in Israel and are being demonized everywhere else? Being a bystander in that situation would be bad enough, but I fear that many people are also turning into perpetrators and that 2023 will be remembered as the year that changed everything for Israel AND for our civilization.
• Amsterdam (December 2023): Pro-Palestine leaflets dropped in a shopping Mall accompanied by an announcement about the Genocide of children by Israel in Gaza. No mention of the 1,200 Israelis butchered by Hamas first.
• Paris and suburbs (November 2023): Stars of David were painted on Paris buildings to identify where Jewish people lived, very reminiscent of 1938 Kristallnacht. No mention of the 1,200 Israelis butchered by Hamas first.
• China (October 2023): Internet antisemitism is at an all-time high.
• Sidney (October 2023): A pro-Palestinian rally took place at the Sidney, Australia Opera House, where chants of “Gas the Jews” were heard. No mention of the 1,200 Israelis butchered by Hamas first.
• London (October 2023): A man was arrested for tearing down posters of the Israeli hostages in Gaza, claiming they were spreading false information. No mention of the 1,200 Israelis butchered by Hamas first.
• United States (December 2023): Harvard President Claudine Gay wouldn’t condemn Hamas and claimed that context had to be considered when “calling for the genocide of Jews.” No mention of the 1,200 Israelis butchered by Hamas first.
Did the world turn against the Allies when they joined forces to obliterate the Nazi regime? Were the “poor Nazis” the recipients of global humanitarian aid and did they become the poster boys for social justice, activism and resistance? Of course not, so why is the world still rooting for the terrorist organization that is Hamas and demonizing Israel? Simply put, this has everything to do with the Bible and God’s final plan for the ages. If you are still on the fence over the infallibility of the Bible and the existence of God, now would be a very good time to trust both as we are seeing all the predicted events falling into place like never before.
If we trust the Bible–and we should–then God will never completely forsake Israel (Jeremiah 31:35-37) and He will catch up with all her enemies (Zechariah 12:9). Unfortunately, there will be great casualties, as 2/3 of the Jewish people will perish during the Tribulation (Zechariah 13:9). Before that terrible event takes place, Christians have a great opportunity to expose their Jewish friends to the only true Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus) of Nazareth (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). The number of casualties can be reduced since God only gave us a percentage, not an exact number. Sadly, the world is ignoring the truth about the Hamas/Israel war and about who God is and His promises to us and Israel.
The Bible also tells us that to become part of God’s family for all eternity and be spared the upcoming Great Tribulation, we must put our trust in the finished work of Yeshua, who gave His own life as a ransom for ours, was buried, rose again, ascended to heaven and will physically return one day to reign on earth from Jerusalem on the throne of David.
If you are looking for New Year’s resolutions, why not trust in Yeshua today if you never have before? And if you already are part of God’s family, why not support Israel in 2024? There has never been a better time to embrace the truth about God and the truth about Israel.
