Prediction for 2017: Times to Remember
The Bible has much to say about the past, present, and future of Jerusalem. The recent UN resolution 2334 brings into stark contrast opposing views on the existence of Israel and the role of the Jews in Jerusalem. There are those who would like to turn back the clock on a century of world history.
- 2017 is the 100th anniversary of the Balfour declaration that sought to create a homeland for the Jews in Palestine and the British military offensive during WWI that led to General Allenby’s wresting of Jerusalem from the control of the Ottoman Turks.
- 2017 is the 70th anniversary of UN declaration 181, that eventually established the sovereign State of Israel the next year.
- 2017 is the 50th anniversary of the Six Day War, in which Israel was able to take on the armed forces of Egypt, Syria, and Jordan and to decisively rout them, leading to the reunification of Jerusalem under independent Jewish control (the reign of King Herod and his family does not count) for the first time in more than 2,000 years.
Prediction for 2017: They Could Not Understand
Biblical scholars before 1917 could not have understood many of the prophecies concerning Judah and Jerusalem. The prophecies of Zechariah, Isaiah, and Ezekiel would have made no sense geopolitically. The Ottoman Turks ruled Palestine until 1917, and the majority of the Jews had been long exiled from their land since the time of the Roman Empire. Biblical commentators prior to 100 years ago could not have anticipated the miraculous ways in which the Lord God of Israel, the Lord of Hosts would intervene, to bring such amazing events to pass such as the revival of Hebrew as a spoken language in a sovereign Jewish state on the territory of their ancient Promised Land.
Prediction for 2017: Be Awake to the Possibilities
President Obama has sent an initial salvo in supporting the UN resolution 2334 that tries to undo a century of history. President Hollande of France is working to promote a 70 nation Mid-East “peace” conference that once again puts Israel on the hot-seat. Looking into the Scriptures, it is evident that there will come a time when Jerusalem will once again be partitioned. The Jews will have to fight to secure their territory against the the threat of many nations. Yet as much as these prophesies confirm that there will be a struggle over the land of Israel and the city of Jerusalem, they also offer hope. For the Lord God will intervene and once again Jerusalem will flourish as a city of peace. Wait for it, for it will surely come to pass.
Lessons from the Temple in Jerusalem