Israel 365 News

[Op-Ed] Lies About Civilian Casualties
by JNS DECEMBER 18, 2023
2 MIN READ
israel’s ratio of civilian vs. combatant casualties is the best in the world.

Many people do not know that Israel’s 1948 War of Independence took close to 10 months. Israel’s current war against Hamas, which has been dubbed Israel’s Second War of Independence, is now in its third month. Most military analysts believe it will take at least three more months to finish the job.

Part of the reason Israel is now fighting its third major ground war against Hamas is that it never was allowed to complete the task in 2008 and 2014. Yet U.S. President Joe Biden said this past week, “I want [Israel] to be focused on how to save civilian lives—not stop going after Hamas, but be more careful.” Headlines say things like, “U.S. wants Israel to narrow scale of attack in Gaza.”

This is unacceptable. Israel has to be allowed to do what it has to do in order to survive. Otherwise, the Hamas threats to repeat the Oct. 7 massacre will, God forbid, be realized.

No army in the world does more than Israel’s to protect civilians. Soldiers have literally sacrificed themselves in order to do so. Avoiding civilian casualties is all the more difficult because Hamas knows that the IDF is a humane army. Thus, Hamas routinely uses human shields. Nonetheless, the IDF’s “civilian casualty ratio”—the ratio of civilian casualties vs. combatant casualties—is the best in the world.


Tens of thousands of Palestinians from the northern Gaza Strip walk through a humanitarian corridor to the safety of southern Gaza, Nov. 10, 2023. Photo by Majdi Fathi/TPS. (Source: JNS)
America’s civilian casualty ratio in World War II was approximately 2:1. That means for every combatant killed, two civilians died. In the Iraq War, it is estimated that from 2003-2023 approximately 174,000 civilians were killed vs. 39,900 combatants. This is close to 4.5:1. The Iraq War was similar in many ways to Israel’s current war against Hamas. Yet Israel’s civilian casualty ratio in Gaza is far better than America’s in Iraq. At the most, it is around 2:1 if we accept likely inflated figures from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.

The U.S. would do well to emulate Israel’s approach to civilians located in combat zones, especially urban areas. No one wants to see civilians die in war, but to single out Israel for supposed indifference to civilian lives is unfair and based on lies.
Israel has its work cut out for it. The tunnel war in particular is the hardest type of war to fight. But Israel is making steady progress. In due time, God willing, it will be victorious. Pressure from America is not helpful. Let Israel finish the job.
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Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

For then I will make the peoples pure of speech, So that they all invoke Hashem by name And serve Him with one accord.
כִּי־אָז אֶהְפֹּךְ אֶל־עַמִּים שָׂפָה בְרוּרָה לִקְרֹא כֻלָּם בְּשֵׁם יְהֹוָה לְעָבְדוֹ שְׁכֶם אֶחָד
Zephaniah 3:9 (The Israel Bible, p. 1431)
kee AZ eh-POKH el a-MEEM sa-FAH v'-ru-RAH lik-RO khu-LAM b-SHAYM a-do-NAI l'-ov-DO sh'-KHEM e-KHAD
Reviving the Prophesied “Pure Speech”
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz
Yesterday was December 16th, the date on which Eliezer ben Yehuda, the father of modern Hebrew, passed away in the year 1922.

Born Eliezer Yitzhak Perlman on January 7, 1858, he grew up in the city of Luzhki, Russia (now part of Belarus). His parents were followers of Chabbad Hassidut and, like most Jewish children of the era, Eliezer attended a Jewish elementary school where he studied Hebrew and the Bible from the age of three. His parents hoped he would become a rabbi and sent him to a yeshiva (school of Jewish studies). There, he learned the classical religious texts in Hebrew, but he also delved into secular writings, many of which were about modern Zionism.

Eliezer ben Yeduda eventually moved to Israel and made a significant contribution to modern Zionism and the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. What contribution did he make and how did it help fulfill Biblical prophecy?
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
https://theisraelbible.com/eliezer-ben-yehuda-reviving-the-prophesied-pure-speech/?

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

And the word of Hashem came to Chagai a second time on the twenty-fourth day of the month
וַיְהִי דְבַר־יְהֹוָה שֵׁנִית אֶל־חַגַּי בְּעֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה לַחֹדֶשׁ לֵאמֹר
Haggai 2:20 (The Israel Bible, p. 1438)
vai-HEE d'-VAR a-do-NAI shay-NEET el kha-GAI b'-es-REEM v'-ar-ba-AH la-KHO-desh lay-MOR
Hanukkah's Prophetic Legacy
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz
I had a friend who was scrupulous about keeping a diary. Everything that happened went into his journal. And in his spare time, he updated his calendar to commemorate significant events. Along with the birthdays of friends and family, there were about ten days set aside to commemorate the beginning of jobs and fifteen more days to commemorate visiting significant sites. Once he got married and had kids, practically every day was a special occasion.

The Jewish calendar sometimes seems like this. Of course, the basis for the calendar is the Torah which establishes the Biblical feasts and other holidays. But Abraham lived about 4,000 years ago and, in that time, the Jewish people added a lot of things to their calendar. Though the victory over the Seleucids was certainly significant, there have been many other significant military victories along the way.

What was so special about Hanukkah that made it necessary for the sages to add eight full days onto an already full calendar of holidays?
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
https://theisraelbible.com/hanukkahs-prophetic-legacy/?

The End of Hamas

Hamas, alongside all the terrorist organizations standing with Hamas, will lose this war they started with Israel
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380614/when-harvard-of-the-south-was-an-aspiration/?

When “Harvard of the South” was an Aspiration
We used to aspire to be like Harvard, but today, we want to be nothing like the vile and morally repugnant institution.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380614/when-harvard-of-the-south-was-an-aspiration/?


House Passes Resolution Calling on Harvard, MIT Presidents to Resign
Every Republican but one voted for the resolution, but the Democratic caucus was split.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380618/house-passes-resolution-calling-on-harvard-mit-presidents-to-resign/?

Hanukkah Antisemitism, Then and Now

The Greeks and the Jews should have gotten along. The Greeks were universalists, open to new ideas and intellectualism from all cultures.
READ MORE »https://theisraelbible.com/hanukkah-antisemitism-then-and-now/?

[WATCH] Kibbutz Be’eri: A Community Massacred By Hamas
The story of Kibbutz Be’eri, a community that was massacred by Hamas on October 7.
WATCH » https://www.israel365news.com/video/kibbutz-beeri-a-community-massacred-by-hamas/?


[WATCH] Israel is Doing The World a Favor By Fighting Radical Islam | CBN Interview

Throughout history, the Jewish people fought different enemies under different names. Today's darkness is called Hamas.
WATCH » https://www.israel365news.com/video/israel-is-doing-the-world-a-favor-by-fighting-radical-islam-cbn-interview/?


Jewish Tiktok Workers Reveal Antisemitism in Workplace, Biased Content
The Chinese-owned social network that has received scrutiny for its anti-Israel propaganda appears to struggle with a bigoted company culture.
READ MORE »https://www.israel365news.com/380621/jewish-tiktok-workers-reveal-antisemitism-in-workplace-biased-content/?


Not Surprised: Iran has accessed $10b it received under sanctions waiver
Iran had made two “transactions” for humanitarian purposes from an account in Oman
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380655/not-surprised-iran-has-accessed-10b-it-received-under-sanctions-waiver/?


Israeli Satirical Show Mocks Wealthy Hamas Chiefs

Hamas's three top leaders outside of Gaza have an estimated combined net worth of over $10 billion. Think they should share?
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380655/not-surprised-iran-has-accessed-10b-it-received-under-sanctions-waiver/?


Michael Jackson-Bolanos Charged in Murder of Jewish Detroit Leader Samantha Woll
Michael Jackson-Bolanos, 28, of Detroit, has been charged with the Oct. 21 murder of Samantha Woll, 40, president of the egalitarian Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380634/michael-jackson-bolanos-charged-in-murder-of-jewish-detroit-leader-samantha-woll/?


Aunt of Former Hamas Hostage: ‘We’d love a Christmas miracle’
Relatives of U.S. citizens being held hostage in the Gaza Strip met with President Joe Biden.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380638/aunt-of-former-hamas-hostage-wed-love-a-christmas-miracle/?


[ICYMI] Divine Retribution? Turkish Lawmaker Threatens Israel, Immediately has Heart Attack
"Israel will not escape the wrath of Allah,” Hasan Bitmez said about Israel’s war against Hamas, before collapsing.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380599/divine-retribution-turkish-lawmaker-threatens-israel-immediately-has-heart-attack/?

Home » Gaza terrorist treated in Israel hospital
https://www.israel365news.com/380647/gaza-terrorist-treated-in-petach-tikvah-hospital/?
GAZA HAMAS IDF - ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCE ISRAEL MEDICINE PALESTINIANS TERRORISM
Anesthesiologists tell Rabin Medical Center management they will refuse non-lifesaving treatment to terrorists.

A Palestinian terrorist captured by Israel Defense Forces troops in the Gaza Strip was admitted to a Petach Tikvah hospital for surgery this week, Hebrew media reported on Wednesday.

Following an overnight stay at Rabin Medical Center’s Hasharon Hospital in the central Israeli city, the detainee was transferred on Wednesday night to a military facility for interrogation by the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), Maariv said.

The terrorist was wounded during an exchange of fire with Israeli soldiers in the Strip, according to Channel 13 News.

A spokeswoman for Hasharon Hospital on Wednesday confirmed that its surgeons had operated on a Gaza resident pursuant to a request from Health Ministry officials, but was unable to divulge additional details due to patient privacy restrictions.

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

On that day when you stood aloof, When aliens carried off his goods, When foreigners entered his gates And cast lots for Jerusalem, You were as one of them.
בְּיוֹם עֲמׇדְךָ מִנֶּגֶד בְּיוֹם שְׁבוֹת זָרִים חֵילוֹ וְנׇכְרִים בָּאוּ שְׁעָרָו וְעַל־יְרוּשָׁלַ͏ִם יַדּוּ גוֹרָל גַּם־אַתָּה כְּאַחַד מֵהֶם
Obadiah 1:11 (This Israel Bible, p. 1384)
b'-YOM a-mo-d'-KHA mi-NE-ged, b'-YOM sh'-VOT za-REEM khay-LO, v'-nokh-REEM BA-u sh'-a-RAV v'-al y'-ru-sha-LA-im ya-DU go-RAL gam a-TAH k'-a-KHAD may-HEM
Obadiah’s Warning to the West
By Rabbi Elie Mischel
The Book of Obadiah, the shortest book in the Hebrew Bible with a total of only 21 verses. But boy, do those 21 verses pack a punch!

Obadiah prophesies about Edom, the nation that descends from Jacob’s brother Esau, who will be punished at the end of days for its sins against the people of Israel. But there is just one problem – the nation of “Edom” no longer exists!

Edom was located to the south of ancient Israel on the strategic trade route between Arabia and the Mediterranean. The Edomites were later conquered by the Nabataeans, after which many of them migrated to southern Judea, where they became known as Idumaeans. But by the time the Romans destroyed the second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE, the Idumeans had disappeared from history, along with almost all of the ancient nations mentioned in the Bible.

What, then, are we to make of the Book of Obadiah? Is Obadiah’s prophecy still relevant today?
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
https://www.israel365news.com/380192/obadiahs-warning-to-the-west/?

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

About that time Judah left his brothers and camped near a certain Adullamite whose name was Hirah.
וַיְהִי בָּעֵת הַהִוא וַיֵּרֶד יְהוּדָה מֵאֵת אֶחָיו וַיֵּט עַד־אִישׁ עֲדֻלָּמִי וּשְׁמוֹ חִירָה
Genesis 38:1 (The Israel Bible, p. 98)
vai-HEE ba-AYT ha-HEE va-YAY-red y'-hu-DAH may-AYT e-KHAV va-YAYT ad EESH a-du-la-MEE ush-MO khee-RAH
How Judah Became the Leader of Israel
By Rabbi Pesach Wolicki
Chapter 38 of the book of Genesis, which falls right in the middle of the Torah portion of Vayeishev (Genesis 37:1-40:23), recounts the story of Judah and his family. The question is, why is this story here?

Just to be clear, I am not asking why this story is in the Bible. Rather, the question is why this story is recorded right here, between chapters 37 and 39 of Genesis. Allow me to explain.

Chapter 37 ends with Joseph’s arrival in Egypt after the sale. Chapter 39 continues with the story of Joseph’s time in Egypt, from his arrival there and onward. There is no gap in time between the events in these two chapters. Chapter 39 is the immediate continuation of the conclusion of chapter 37. Chapter 38 interrupts this narrative. This leads us back to our original question, why does this story interupt these two chapters?
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE https://theisraelbible.com/vayeshev-how-judah-became-the-leader-of-israel/?

The Weather the Environment and the War Against Hamas
Use the rubble of Gaza as a foundation to build a new Gaza, and open the tunnels to help people see how a breaking of their past is critical as the foundation for their future. Without this, there will be more rubble, and many more cold nights for Gazans.
READ MOREhttps://www.israel365news.com/380201/the-weather-the-environment-and-the-war-against-hamas/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=How+Judah+Became+the+Leader+of+Israel

The Way Forward is Not Behind Us
The best solution for the way forward after the war is to continue as a “One-State Solution” in which Jews and Palestinians live in peace with each other in the same state.
READ MORE https://www.israel365news.com/380208/the-way-forward-is-not-behind-us/?

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

Then he explained to me as follows: "This is the word of GOD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit —said GOD of Hosts.
וַיַּעַן וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי לֵאמֹר זֶה דְּבַר־יְהֹוָה אֶל־זְרֻבָּבֶל לֵאמֹר לֹא בְחַיִל וְלֹא בְכֹחַ כִּי אִם־בְּרוּחִי אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת
Zechariah 4:6 (The Israel Bible, p. 1445)
va-YA-an vai-YO-mer ay-LAI lay-MOR: ZEH d'-var a-do-NAI el z'-ru-ba-VEL lay-MOR: LO v'-KHA-yil v'-lo v'-KHO-akh, KEE im b'-ru-KHEE a-MAR a-do-NAI t'-za-VA-OT
Faith Over Might: The Enduring Legacy of the Maccabees
By Shira Schechter
Today is the first day of Hanukkah. During the time of the Second Temple, under the reign of Syrian-Greek leader Antiochus IV, the Jewish people faced a severe test of faith. Antiochus IV, with his zealous drive for Hellenization, imposed prohibitions on Jewish religious practices and desecrated the sacred Temple in Jerusalem, even erecting a statue of Zeus Olympus in the Holy Temple. This was not merely a political crisis; it was a spiritual assault on the very soul of Judaism.

Rising against this tyranny, the Maccabees, a small band of faithful Jews, took a stand. Their battle was not just against the might of a great empire; it was a fight for the spirit of Judaism, a struggle to preserve our way of worship, our traditions, and our identity. Miraculously, against the odds, they emerged victorious. They reclaimed Jerusalem, purified the Temple, and relit the Menorah (candelabrum) with a single cruse of oil, which, defying all logic, burned for eight days. This was not a mere military triumph; it was a divine affirmation of faith and resilience.

The story of the Maccabees resonates deeply with us today.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Rekindling a Family’s Light: A Hanukkah miracle in the ashes of Kibbutz Be’eri
A woman who returned from Gaza captivity after 50 days asked her son-in-law to go to Be’eri and salvage some of her personal belongings from her home. After sifting through ashes for hours he found two beloved family menorahs.
READ MORE https://www.israel365news.com/380167/rekindling-a-familys-light-a-hanukkah-miracle-in-the-ashes-of-kibbutz-beeri/?

https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/6197569/jewish/11-Facts-About-Antiochus-Every-Jew-Should-Know.htm
11 Facts About Antiochus Every Jew Should Know
Learn about the evil king who oppressed the Jews and defiled the Temple in the Chanukah story.
By Yehuda Altein
Antiochus was the evil king who oppressed the Jews and defiled the Temple in the Chanukah story. The Maccabees defeated his armies, and proceeded to clean the Temple and light the menorah, which famously burned for eight days. Want to know more? Read on to discover 11 facts about this infamous Chanukah figure.
https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/4960265/jewish/The-Megillah-of-Antiochus.htm

https://www.israel365news.com/380192/obadiahs-warning-to-the-west/?
Obadiah’s Warning to the West
Elie Mischel
ELIE MISCHEL
BIBLICAL NEWS
DECEMBER 7, 2023
8 MIN READ
Home » Obadiah’s Warning to the West
ISRAEL PALESTINIANS TERRORISM UNITED STATES (AMERICA)
This past Shabbat, Jews across the world read the Book of Obadiah, the shortest book in the Hebrew Bible with a total of only 21 verses. But boy, do those 21 verses pack a punch!

Obadiah prophesies about Edom, the nation that descends from Jacob’s brother Esau, who will be punished at the end of days for its sins against the people of Israel. But there is just one problem – the nation of “Edom” no longer exists!

Edom was located to the south of ancient Israel on the strategic trade route between Arabia and the Mediterranean. The Edomites were later conquered by the Nabataeans, after which many of them migrated to southern Judea, where they became known as Idumaeans. But by the time the Romans destroyed the second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE, the Idumeans had disappeared from history, along with almost all of the ancient nations mentioned in the Bible.

What, then, are we to make of the Book of Obadiah? Is Obadiah’s prophecy still relevant today?

In Jewish tradition, the term “Edom” is broadly used to refer to the Roman Empire, the European powers that inherited its legacy, and the nations of the West that are the spiritual descendants of Rome. In other words, the Book of Obadiah’s prophecy about Edom is actually a warning to the Western nations of our time – the United States included.


Illustration of the book of Obadiah (source: Wikimedia)
The sages explain that Obadiah’s prophecy speaks of the end of days, about the time period of the war of Gog and Magog (Malbim). But while the prophets Ezekiel and Zechariah address the evil Gog himself – the Islamic nations of Ishmael who will actively attack the people of Israel – Obadiah addresses the people of Edom, the Western nations that will support and encourage the Ishmaelites who attack Israel.

An Unholy Alliance

“From the prophecies of Daniel and Isaiah and the statement of our sages it is clear that the advent of the Messiah will take place when the hands of Edom and Arabia (Ishmael) will be mighty and when their kingdoms will spread throughout the world… Daniel in the latter part of his vision alludes to the Kingdom of Ishmael (the Arabs), to the rise of Mohammed and then to the arrival of the Messiah. Similarly, Isaiah intimated that the coming of the Messiah will occur after the rise of Mohammed, in the verse ‘A man riding on an ass, a man riding on a camel, and two men riding on horses.’ (21:7). Now ‘the man riding on an ass’ is a symbolic reference to the Messiah as is evident from another verse which describes him as ‘lowly and riding on an ass’ (Zechariah 9:9). He will follow the ‘man riding on the camel’ that is, the kingdom of Arabia. The statement ‘two men riding on horses’ refers to both empires, Edom and Arabia” (Maimonides, Epistle to the Jews of Yemen, 1172).

Maimonides implies that at the end of days, there will be some sort of union between the nations of Edom and Ishmael, an alliance for which there is biblical precedent. Over three thousand years ago, Esau (Edom) and Ishmael formed a bond through the marriage of Esau to Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael.

“So Esau went to Ishmael, and he took Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, the son of Abraham, the sister of Nebaioth, in addition to his other wives as a wife” (Genesis 28:9). The sages explain that ‘Esau went to Ishmael to learn his evil ways and to increase his number of wives’ (Midrash Tanchuma, Exodus 1:6)

This same dynamic is all too common on American college campuses today, in which young, naive and spiritually lost Americans (the people of Edom) turn to radical Muslim professors and student groups (the people of Ishmael) to find direction and purpose in their lives. Tragically, hundreds of thousands of students, many of them raised in Christian and Jewish homes, have been radicalized in this way.


The Widener Library at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., Oct. 7, 2007. Credit: Joseph Williams via Wikimedia Commons.
These young “Progressives,” who serve as the foot soldiers of the antisemitic pro-Palestine movement, are the Ishmaelites’ useful idiots. The LGBTQ+ activists who so passionately support Hamas terrorists would be butchered by Hamas if they dared to step foot in the Gaza Strip. Yet they, and millions of other fools, support the jihadists who despise them.

“The vision of Obadiah; So said the Lord God concerning Edom; We have heard tidings from the Lord, and a messenger has been sent among the nations, ‘Arise and let us rise up against them in war!’” (Obadiah 1:1).

Who is this messenger calling the nations to rise up and attack the West? Rabbi Meir Wisser (1809-1879) explains that “these are the messengers the children of Ishmael will send to each other to encourage each other to rise up and destroy the West.” Incredibly, Rabbi Wisser wrote his commentary on Obadiah during the 19th century, when the Arab nations were weak and the Ottoman Empire was known as the “Sick man of Europe.”

This is precisely what is occurring today, as imams throughout Europe teach their followers to embrace jihad, hate Jews and to overthrow the Judeo-Christian culture of the West. They are openly declaring their true goal – to topple and take over the West from the inside. Is anybody listening?

As Obadiah explains, the people of the West are foolish and asleep. They do not realize that by helping Ishmael in its war against Israel, they are sowing the seeds of their own destruction. Their erstwhile Ishmaelite “allies” do not only hate the Jews. Their ultimate goal is to topple the entire West and bring it under the dominion of Islam. As Hamas terrorists have proudly said, “First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people!”

Abraham sends Hagar and Ishmael away (Gustave Dore
Abraham sends Hagar and Ishmael away (Gustave Dore
The Downfall of the West

“If you go up high like an eagle, and if you place your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down, says the Lord” (Obadiah 1:4).

The Western nations of Edom, who for so long were the world’s dominant powers, will crash down from their great heights. One who falls from a low place is not seriously in danger. Therefore God placed the ‘nest’ of Edom among the ‘stars,’ giving the Western nations dominance over the world, in order to increase the impact of their ultimate demise.

From their heights of power, the Western nations will be brought down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat for divine judgment: “For behold, in those days and in that time when I return the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations and I will take them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will contend with them there concerning My people and My heritage, Israel, which they scattered among the nations, and My land they divided” (Joel 4:1-2).

When God “returns the captives of Judah,” when the Israeli hostages are returned to their families, God will judge the nations for their treatment of Israel. God will ask every nation: “When Islamic terrorists raped, tortured and slaughtered over 1,200 of My beloved children on October 7, how did you respond?” Those nations that supported Hamas and Iran in their goal of dividing the Holy Land and taking it away from the people of Israel will be judged and punished for their betrayal.

The downfall of the West will not occur overnight or in spectacular fashion. Rather, the enemies of Edom – the Muslim Ishmaelites – will sneak up on the West like thieves who take everything you own as you sleep.

“Did thieves come upon you, did plunderers of the night? How were you silent? Will they not steal till they have enough?” (Obadiah 1:5).

Everyone will ask: “Why did you not awaken from your slumber to expel these Ishmaelite enemies from your midst?” (Malbim). The same question should be asked today, as Europe’s radical Muslim population grows by leaps and bounds. Projections show that Muslims will make up 19.7% of Germany’s population by 2050, with similar numbers in England and France. Meanwhile, leaders who dare call out the danger of Europe’s rising Muslim population, like Geert Wilders of the Netherlands, are marginalized as bigots and “Islamophobes.”


The “Mr. Shnitz” kosher restaurant targeted with antisemitic graffiti in Levallois-Perret, France, on Aug.19, 2023. Source: Twitter. (Source: JNS)
“Shall I not on that day, says the Lord, destroy wise men from Edom and discernment from the mountain of Esau?” (Obadiah 1:8).

The Western nations, once led by wise leaders, will lack wisdom at the end of days. In our generation, European and American leaders are concerned about transgender rights and foolish debates about who qualifies as a “woman” while they are oblivious to the Muslim barbarians at the gates who are preparing to conquer their nations from the inside.

Silence in the Face of Evil

“On that day you stood from afar, on the day strangers captured his possessions, and foreigners came into his cities, and on Jerusalem they cast lots; you, too, are like one of them” (Obadiah 1:11).

As Hamas murdered, raped and torture, most of the Western nations of Edom remained silent, ignoring the horrors perpetrated by Ishmael against God’s people. In the wake of October 7, international women’s organizations like U.N. Women refused to condemn the brutal sexual crimes perpetrated by Hamas terrorists against hundreds of Israeli women. And where is the global outcry over the hundreds of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas? The silence is deafening.

Obadiah could not be clearer. Those who remain silent in the face of evil “are like one of them.” God will hold the cowardly nations of Edom accountable together with the Ishmaelite Muslims.

“You should not have rejoiced about the children of Judah on the day of their destruction, and you should not have spoken proudly on the day of their distress” (Obadiah 1:12).

Many in the West, like the mealy mouthed UN Secretary-General António Guterres, did not merely remain silent in the face of evil, but also aided and abetted it. Guterres justified the monstrous actions of Hamas, saying their barbaric slaughter “did not happen in a vacuum.”


New York, NY – September 20, 2021: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the media on the Informal Leaders Roundtable on Climate Action at UN Headquarters
Obadiah prophesies that the time will come when the hundreds of thousands who celebrated the murder of Israelis on the streets of London will pay for their callousness. And the day will come when American professors who called the slaughter of October 7th “heroic” and a “great achievement” will be held to account.

“For the day of the Lord over all the nations is close; as you have done shall be done to you; your recompense shall be returned upon your head” (Obadiah 1:15).

The day will soon come when the hypocritical nations of the West will lament their evil doings, but by then it will be too late. As Rabbi David Altschuler of Prague (1687-1769) writes, “You should have thought about the day when you would receive payment from God for your evil deeds, for that day is coming sooner than you think.”

Whither America?

The day of reckoning for the West is coming. Most of the European nations have already caved to Islamicism, cowering helplessly as brazen Muslims and their supporters take over the streets of London and Paris.

What about the ostensible leader of the West, the United States of America? Will the world’s leading democracy join the ranks of Edom, turn its back on Israel and surrender to the tyranny of Islam?

Though the majority of Americans support Israel, over 50% of young people support the Hamas rapists and murderers who gleefully tortured Jewish women and children. As these young people grow older and assume the leadership of the nation, what kind of country will America be? Can these trends be reversed?

God has promised that Israel will be victorious. But will America survive? That is up to us.

Hamas Tranquilized Hostages Before Release to ‘Look Happy’

Hamas drugged the hostages who were released during the ceasefire so that they would “look happy” during the transfer to the Red Cross in Gaza, according to Israel’s Health Ministry.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380144/hamas-tranquilized-

Skeptics of Ebal Curse Tablet Accuse Christian Researchers of “Seeing the Face of Jesus in a Grilled Cheese Sandwich”

While the researchers who made the discovery claim the evidence indicates they have found an artifact from the Biblical altar of Joshua, an opposing school of thought maintains that the Bible is not historically accurate.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380123/skeptics-of-ebal-curse-tablet-accuse-christian-researchers-of-seeing-the-face-of-jesus-in-a-grilled-cheese-sandwich/?


Rekindling a Family’s Light: A Hanukkah miracle in the ashes of Kibbutz Be’eri
Eight family members were kidnapped, his father-in-law killed, and their home completely burned. The young man sifted desperately through the ashes and found a precious remnant of the past to bring light to the family's future.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/380167/rekindling-a-familys-light-a-hanukkah-miracle-in-the-ashes-of-kibbutz-beeri/?

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

You spread a table for me in full view of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my drink is abundant.
תַּעֲרֹךְ לְפָנַי  שֻׁלְחָן נֶגֶד צֹרְרָי דִּשַּׁנְתָּ בַשֶּׁמֶן רֹאשִׁי כּוֹסִי רְוָיָה
Psalms 23:5 (The Israel Bible, p. 1498)
ta-a-ROKH l'-fa-NAI shul-KHAN NE-ged tzo-r'-RAI, di-SHAN-ta va-SHE-men ro-SHEE, ko-SEE r'-va-YAH
Since When do Sheep Sit at a Table?
By Rabbi Pesach Wolicki
Since the Bible was originally written in Hebrew, many nuances and subtleties of the text's meaning are lost in translation when we study it in English. One example of this can be found in Psalm 23.
The standard translation of Psalm 23 verse 5 is:

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

A glance at one of the numerous Bible translation websites that provide lists of all the many translations shows very few differences from this exact version. However, a close and careful reading of the Hebrew original of this verse reveals that not only is this standard translation imprecise but the deeper meaning of the verse is lost in these translations.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
https://theisraelbible.com/psalm-235-since-when-do-sheep-sit-at-a-table/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Since+When+do+Sheep+Sit+at+a+Table%3F&utm_campaign=I365+-+Daily+-+December+06%2C+2023

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness, I fear no harm, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff—they comfort me.
גַּם כִּי־אֵלֵךְ בְּגֵיא צַלְמָוֶת לֹא־אִירָא רָע כִּי־אַתָּה עִמָּדִי שִׁבְטְךָ וּמִשְׁעַנְתֶּךָ הֵמָּה יְנַחֲמֻנִי
Psalms 23:4 (The Israel Bible, 1498)
GAM kee ay-LEYKH b'-GAY tzal-MA-vet lo EE-ra RA kee a-TAH i-ma-DEE shiv-t'-KHA u-mish-a-ne-TE-kha HAY-mah y'-na-kha-MU-nee
Talking to God, Not About Him
By Rabbi Pesach Wolicki
A personal relationship with God, like all relationships, is full of ups and downs. No matter how strong our faith is, there are times when we feel closer to Him and times when we feel further away. I am not only referring to difficult times when our faith is challenged. Even in the best of times, we do not always relate to God as though He is standing right in front of us.

Of course, the reality is that the Lord is with us at every moment. There is no place absent of His presence. He is always here. But we don’t relate to Him that way. The truth is that we can’t relate to God that way. We wouldn’t be able to function. Imagine if the creator of heaven and earth were visibly in the room with you. Would you be able to have a conversation with your kids? Would you be able to get any work done?

Just think about what you are reading right now. We are talking about God. But if He is right here in the room with us, isn’t it rude for us to speak of Him in the third person as if He isn’t here? The answer is, no. God allows us room to live our lives. While we need to be aware of Him at all times, He does not expect us to be so conscious of His presence that we always treat Him as though He is standing beside us.

Just like a parent who welcomes the independence of their child as they mature, the Lord allows us space to develop our own identities and to live our lives. He wants us to have relationships with other people and to be productive in His world. As I mentioned, if we felt His presence right before us at all times, we would not be able to grow.

So how do we make the transition from speaking about God to speaking to Him?
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE https://theisraelbible.com/talking-god-not/?

https://www.israel365news.com/380045/are-we-living-the-gog-umagog-war/?
Are we Living the Gog U’Magog War?
and you will advance upon My people Yisrael, like a cloud covering the earth. This shall happen on that distant day: I will bring you to My land, that the nations may know Me when, before their eyes, I manifest My holiness through you, O Gog!
EZEKIEL8:16(THE ISRAEL BIBLE)
Elie Mischel
BIBLICAL NEWS
DECEMBER 4, 2023
5 MIN READ
Home » Are we Living the Gog U’Magog War
BIBLE GOG AND MAGOG HAMAS IDF - ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCE ISRAEL TERRORISM
This is not business as usual.

Though Israel has fought many small wars against Hamas, everyone understands that the current war is different. After Hamas slaughtered 1,200 innocent Israelis on October 7, nations throughout the world immediately felt the reverberations. This is a war with global implications, pitting Jews and Christians, the people of the Bible, against Muslims and secular progressives, who reject the Bible and all that it stands for.

Could this finally be the war of Gog and Magog, the great war of the end of days?

In chapters 38 and 39 of the Book of Ezekiel, the prophet describes a great war that will take place at the end of days. Gog of the land of Magog from the north will lead a host of nations in battle against Israel and God, a war that will bring about the final redemption. God’s wrath will come down upon the invaders, who will die in a series of supernatural plagues.

“Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal… And you will come from your place, from the utmost north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding horses; a great assembly and a mighty army. And you will ascend upon My people Israel like a cloud to cover the earth; at the end of days it will be, and I shall bring you upon My land in order that the nations recognize Me when I am sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog” (Ezekiel 38:1, 15-16).


Ezekiel’s Vision of the Sign “Tau” from Ezekiel IX:2–7. —Mosan champlevé panel, mid-12th century. (Source: Wikipedia)
For thousands of years, rabbis, pastors and Bible scholars have made confident claims about the identity of Gog and Magog, assuming that the great wars of their generation must be the fulfillment of this prophecy. But with the passage of time and the stubborn refusal of the final redemption to arrive, their speculations fell flat. That said, the current war aligns with the Gog and Magog prophecies in ways that are truly eye opening. Though we cannot make predictions with any certainty, the connections are hard to ignore.

“’Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal… Persia, Cush, and Put are with them; all of them with buckler and helmet. Gomer and all its wings, the house of Togarmah, the utmost parts of the north and all its wings, many peoples with you.” (Ezekiel 38:2-3, 5-6)

What is the identity of the land of Magog? And who are these other nations that are destined to participate in this monumental war against Israel?

Interestingly, Israel’s traditional Biblical enemies are not mentioned in these verses. There is no mention of the Moabites, Ammonites, Egyptians, Philistine, Midianites, Amalekites. These ancient adversaries are replaced by new enemies, who will invade the ingathered nation of Israel from afar.

This is a very significant shift. In earlier times, Israel battled neighboring tribes and peoples in conventional struggles for land and resources. But the final battle against Gog will be a global war of far greater significance.

The rabbinic sages identify the Land of Magog as “Germanya” (Targum Yonatan). Yechiel Zvi Hirschenson, a 19th century scholar, asserts that “Germanya” refers to Kerman or Kermania, the second largest province in modern Iran, whose main city is called Kerman to this day. This identification follows the rules of ancient Hebrew, in which the letters G and K are interchangeable.

Given modern Iran’s genocidal stance toward the State of Israel and its sponsorship of the three groups currently attacking Israel – Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houtis of Yemen – the identification of the land of Magog with the Islamic Republic of Iran is compelling.


What about the other nations that join with Gog in the war against Israel? Persia, of course, is Iran, which corresponds with the identification of Magog as an Iranian province. Put is traditionally identified with northern Africa, while Kush usually refers to the lands south of Egypt, including Sudan, Yemen and the entire Arabian peninsula. Historically, Meshech and Tubal were Scythian tribes from Asia Minor, which is modern day Turkey.

Based on rabbinic tradition and historical research, it is reasonable to conclude that “Gog of the Land of Magog” is an Iranian leader who will attack Israel together with many Arab allies and Turkey. This aligns closely with today’s political reality, in which all of these nations and terror groups seek the destruction of Israel.

But the connection between Iran and Magog goes even deeper. Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (1865-1935) explains that Gog and Magog’s motivations for attacking Israel will be different from those of other nations that have attacked Israel throughout history:

“All of the opposition of earlier enemies who attacked Israel derived from self-serving motives: to advance themselves through Israel’s destruction, to prevent Israel from succeeding at their expense, or to prevent the weakening of their strength as Israel grows spiritually stronger. But the war of Gog and Magog will derive purely from a desire to cause harm and destruction… It will come at a time when Israel is back in its land and seeks peace with its neighbors. But [Gog and Magog] will desire only to cause evil and will be jealous of the glory of God that will be increased through Israel. (Ein Ayah, Brachot I, 173)

Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah are not afraid that Israel will conquer their lands, nor do they seek economic benefits from attacking Israel. Hamas’ attacks have only brought death and destruction upon the Gaza Strip. They are driven by pure hatred of Israel, seeking only to murder and destroy. As Yahyah Sinwar recently said, “The leaders of Israel should know this, October 7 was just the general rehearsal.” His goal is simple: to murder as many Jews as possible.


Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar holding a Palestinian child dressed as a Hamas fighter during a rally in Gaza City (pre 2023)
Fortunately, God will save His people, and the enemies of Israel will pay for their deeds:

“So says the Lord God: Lo! I am against you, O Gog, prince and head of Meshech and Tubal. And I will unbridle and entice you and lead you up from the utmost parts of the north and bring you upon the mountains of Israel… Upon the mountains of Israel shall you fall, you and all your hordes, and the people that are with you; to the birds of prey, to all the winged creatures and the beasts of the field have I given you to be devoured… And I will send fire on Magog and on those who dwell in safety in the islands, and they will know that I am the Lord. And I will make known My Holy Name in the midst of My people Israel, and I will no longer cause My Holy Name to be profaned, and the nations will know that I, the Lord, am holy in Israel.” (Ezekiel 39:1-2,4,6-7)

May we merit to see these miracles with our own eyes!

Amir Tsarfati: Israel and the Tribulation
Amir's Bible Bites Devotionals
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From:
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December 4, 2023

One of my dearest pastors taught me, “Amir, happiness and joy can be translated in so many different ways, but suffering, only by one.” Suffering is the only language that everyone understands. And, unfortunately, that’s the one thing that really brings us always back on track. In Israel, we have a term meaning “to come back with an answer.” It’s very interesting, but it’s not just an answer. It’s to return. It’s amazing, “Come back and return to me,” He says, “and then I will return to you.” “I am here.” God is near all those who worship Him in spirit and in truth. Matthew 23, look what He says. Jesus is looking at the city of Jerusalem. “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her, how often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathered her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. See, your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see me no more until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’” He says, look, you suffer from your own consequences and you won’t be able to see me until you return. You come back and you ask me to come, and I will come. Because when you come back to me, I will come back to you.

Amir Tsarfati: Suffering and Repentance
There are some things within the Christian life that we will be glad to be rid of when we enter into eternity, not the least of which are suffering and trials.

James 1:2-3
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

1 Peter 1:6-7
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 5:10
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

Suffering and trials have a productive impact on our lives, as James and Peter point out. Trials produce patience and prove the genuineness of our faith. Suffering perfects, establishes, strengthens, and settles us. Settle means “to stabilize”.

We would all prefer to live without this productive pair of life experiences, but the truth is they are the only means by which those things can be accomplished. After all, you can’t learn patience by never having it tested. You can’t show the genuineness of your faith without suffering. And consider this, Jesus Himself proves the importance and reality of these truths:

Hebrews 5:5-8
So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.” As He also says in another place: “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek”; who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.

Jesus “learning obedience” is not an infraction on His omniscience, but rather proof that some things can only be learned by experience. As God, He had not suffered. As God, He was the One to be obeyed not the One who had to obey. In His humanity, He learned these things.

Again, this is not our favorite truth but it is true nonetheless. Suffering and trials teach us things that cannot be learned any other way.

Hosea 5:15
“I will return again to My place till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face; in their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.”

The afflictions of the time of Jacob’s trouble will cause many of the Jews to earnestly seek the Holy One of Israel, whom their fathers rejected. They will acknowledge this offense, and one-third of the Jews, all who survive the Great Tribulation, will earnestly seek the Lord and thus “all Israel will be saved.”

What finally opens their eyes to their Messiah? Suffering affliction.

Yet many today question the goodness, or even existence, of God because of the very things that teach us much of what we need to know that can only be learned through sufferings and trials.

These things are so powerful, when seen from the proper biblical perspective, that they will lead to the salvation of the whole nation of Israel – that surviving one-third (Zechariah 13:8).

Many who are reading this are going through some form of trial or suffering. If it is causing you to question God’s goodness or faithfulness, remember, there are things to be learned from it. The greatest proof is how Jesus learned obedience through His suffering. We should learn the same thing through ours.

Trial-free and suffering-free lives do not exist, and the presence of problems does not annul God’s goodness and kindness.

John 16:33
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

The next life is nothing like this one. Because of that, we can be of good cheer. This world system and the fallen nature of man are soon to be replaced with “fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11) for all who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and are saved.

Take heart, dear friends. We’re going to be in the new Jerusalem for a very long time, and this life, which is but a vapor, and all its trials and sufferings will no longer be a part of our existence.

Revelation 21:4
“And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus,

https://theisraelbible.com/vayishlach-the-sciatic-nerve-and-the-eternity-of-israel/?
The Sciatic Nerve and the Eternity of Israel
Dec 8, 2022
עַל־כֵּ֡ן לֹֽא־יֹאכְל֨וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶת־גִּ֣יד הַנָּשֶׁ֗ה אֲשֶׁר֙ עַל־כַּ֣ף הַיָּרֵ֔ךְ עַ֖ד הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה כִּ֤י נָגַע֙ בְּכַף־יֶ֣רֶךְ יַעֲקֹ֔ב בְּגִ֖יד הַנָּשֶֽׁה׃

That is why the children of Yisrael to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Yaakov's hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle.

al KAYN lo yo-kh'-LU v'-NAY yis-ra-AYL et GEED ha-na-SHEH a-SHER al KAF ha-ya-RAYKH ad ha-YOM ha-ZEH, KEE na-GA b'-KHAF YE-rekh ya-a-KOV b'-GEED ha-na-SHEH.

Genesis 32:33
In this week’s Torah portion, Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4 – 36:43), we read of the famous struggle between Jacob and a “man” the night before Jacob’s much-anticipated encounter with his brother Esau. The man turned out to be an angel. During the struggle, Jacob’s hip joint was dislocated, causing him to emerge from the confrontation with a limp.

“Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he wrenched Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the socket of his hip was strained as he wrestled with him…

The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping on his hip. That is why the children of Israel to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Jacob’s hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle. (Genesis 32:25-26, 32-33)

As a result of this incident, Jews are forbidden from eating the “thigh muscle” of an animal, otherwise known as the sciatic nerve. It seems that this commandment is a commemoration of the struggle between Jacob and the “man.”

What if the “man” had struck Jacob on the arm or the head? Would the Bible have then stated a prohibition against eating arms or heads of animals? Why did the “man” just happen to strike Jacob at that exact spot on his body? The location of the wound is obviously significant enough that it results in a commandment relating to that specific limb of the body. Moreover, the Torah does not include other commandments that commemorate events from the lives of the patriarchs in Genesis. For example, there is no biblically mandated law commanded in the wake of the binding of Isaac or the sale of Joseph.

What is the meaning of this unusual prohibition?

The Sefer Hachinuch, a 13th-century book that discusses the meaning and basic rules for each of the 613 commandments in the Torah, discusses the prohibition against eating the sciatic nerve:

“The root [meaning] of this commandment is to serve as a reminder to Israel that, although they will suffer many hardships in the exiles at the hands of the nations and at the hands of the children of Esau, they can be confident that they will never be lost. Rather, their offspring and name will always arise, and a redeemer will arrive and redeem them from hardship…. The reason for this symbol is that the angel who fought with our forefather Jacob – which according to tradition was the ministering angel of Esau – attempted to uproot Jacob and his progeny from the world. “He saw that he could not defeat him,” (v.26) and hurt him by striking his hip. So too, Esau’s progeny afflicts the progeny of Jacob. At the end [of days] there will be redemption for [Jacob’s progeny] from them.” (Sefer Hachinuch, commandment 3)

Why, in his attempt to “uproot Jacob and his progeny”, did the angel strike Jacob’s hip? What was he trying to do?

The Hebrew word for “hip” used here is yerech. Yerech usually refers to a hip or thigh. Interestingly, the word yerech also has another meaning, namely, it is used in many verses in the Bible as a euphemistic reference to the loins, the reproductive organ of man. Here are a few examples:

The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all; Joseph was already in Egypt. – Exodus 1:5

He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives. – Judges 8:30

In these verses offspring or descendants are referred to as yotzei yerech, literally, “those who emerge from the thigh.” (see also Genesis 46:26)

Based on this, I would like to suggest that the angel of Esau who wrestled with Jacob was attempting to cut off Jacob’s ability to reproduce, to destroy his future. In the words of the Sefer Hachinuch cited above, he “attempted to uproot Jacob and his progeny from the world.”

Esau was the grandfather of the archenemy of the people of Israel, Amalek. Later, after the Exodus from Egypt, the nation of Amalek, Esau’s descendants, attacked the children of Israel (Exodus 17:8). In a fascinating commentary on this episode, the Jewish sages of the Midrash homiletically described the attack as follows:

“Rabbi Hinena bar Shikla taught: ‘What were the Amalekites doing [when they attacked Israel]? They were cutting off Israel’s circumcisions and casting them heavenward and saying [to God] “Is this what you have chosen? Take for yourself what you have chosen!”‘” (Midrash Tanhuma, Ki Tetzei:10)

It is important to note that Midrashic comments such as this are not meant to be taken literally. The ancient Jewish sages used this kind of embellishment of Biblical stories as a method of commentary. The sages would routinely “add” details to the stories in the Bible to highlight lessons they wished to derive from the narratives. Why did the sages suggest that Amalek was castrating the children of Israel when they attacked them?

Let’s put these two Biblical stories together. Here in Genesis 32, the angel of Esau wrestled with Jacob. This confrontation foreshadowed the eternal struggle between Esau’s offspring and Jacob’s. In the course of this struggle, Esau’s angel struck Jacob on the inner thigh. Centuries later, shortly after the children of Israel left Egypt in Exodus 17, Esau’s descendants attacked the descendants of Jacob in almost the same spot on the body.

What does all this mean?

The special covenant of Abraham that binds Israel to God is made through circumcision. Circumcision, the removal of the foreskin, declares that even the most physical, most natural elements of a person must be consecrated to God. Circumcision says that there is no area of life too natural or too physical to be controlled by His will.

Rabbi Judah Leow, the great 16th-century European rabbi known as The Maharal of Prague, explained the reason God commanded that circumcision must be done on the eighth day. Seven days represent creation – the natural world. The eighth day represents that which is beyond the natural creation, beyond the seven days. Circumcision happens on the eighth day because the covenant with God places Israel beyond the reach of the natural order.

Circumcision represents the idea that through a relationship with God – a covenant – Israel rises above nature. Esau rules only within nature. Esau-Amalek’s only hope for victory over the supernatural people of Israel is for Israel to abandon its supernatural covenant with God. Only if the circumcision is uprooted can Esau win.

The prohibition against eating the sciatic nerve serves as an eternal reminder that, although Jacob and his offspring can be maimed by Esau – although Israel may often limp through history because of oppression at Esau’s hand – their future is never in doubt. Esau’s angel missed the mark. Jacob’s ability to reproduce, Jacob’s future, was not destroyed. Jacob’s offspring, the nation of Israel – through our special covenant with God – is eternal and supernatural.

Rabbi Pesach Wolicki serves as Executive Director of Ohr Torah Stone’s Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation, and he is cohost of the Shoulder to Shoulder podcast

Resettling Gazans in the West is Not the Answer
While calling on the “international community,” or “the West” to take in Gazans to solve Israel’s problem may be a good idea from the perspective of domestic Israeli security, this must not become the direction of Israeli policy for a number of reasons.
Rather than calling for resettlement of Gazans in Western countries, the Arab-Muslim world should take responsibility for a problem that they helped create and have always refused to help solve.

Two weeks ago, MK Danny Danon, former Israeli ambassador to the UN and one of the most prominent political figures in Israel, co-authored an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal with MK Ram Ben-Barak, former deputy director of the Mossad, titled, “The West should welcome Gaza refugees.”

Danon and Barak called on Western nations to take in Gazans in the wake of the current Israel-Hamas war. Right-wing Danon and Center-Left Ben-Barak were showing bipartisan Israeli support for this idea.

Earlier this month, a similar position was taken by current Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel on these pages. After laying out the failures of past attempts to solve the Gaza problem, Gamliel presents a similar solution to that of Danon and Ben-Barak.

“The international community can assist in the costs of resettlement, helping the people of Gaza build new lives in their new host countries.” She added that she is “gratified to hear that members of Knesset from across the political spectrum, including both the coalition and opposition, have joined my ministry’s initiative and declared their support for it.”


HERZLIYA, ISRAEL. June 10, 2021. Gila Gamliel, Israeli right wing politician from the Likud political party & Intellegence minister (source: Shutterstock)
Taking in Gazans is not the solution
While calling on the “international community,” or “the West” to take in Gazans to solve Israel’s problem may be a good idea from the perspective of domestic Israeli security, this must not become the direction of Israeli policy for a number of reasons.

Alongside the military campaign, Israel must also win the political war for international opinion. We have all witnessed the mass pro-Hamas demonstrations in the streets of Western cities and on college campuses.

The Left across the Western world is decidedly against Israel. And as disheartening as these anti-Israel demonstrations are, we must realize that we in Israel are not the only ones who find them disturbing. The silent majority of Westerners are horrified as well.

This past week, in the Netherlands, Geert Wilders’ populist-nationalist PVV party was elected to lead the country. According to polling conducted over the weeks leading up to the election, the rise in pro-Hamas sentiment by the large Muslim minority in the Netherlands contributed significantly to the PVV victory.

It should be noted that Wilders and the PVV are strongly supportive of Israel.

The Wilders victory is only one indicator of where Israel’s support currently resides. In the United Nations, when an anti-Israel resolution was proposed on October 26 calling for a full and immediate ceasefire, Hungary was one of only 14 countries to vote against it. Hungary, led by another populist nationalist, Viktor Orban, has been firm in its support of Israel since Orban took power. These are but two illustrative examples of a growing political trend.

Followers of Orban and Wilders, along with many native Europeans, have been suffering for years from the effects of mass immigration from countries in the Middle East.

Rather than assimilating into the Western culture of their new countries, the millions of Moslem immigrants that have flooded European countries over the past few decades have brought Mideastern Islamic values to Europe. Patriotic native Europeans are legitimately afraid of losing the Western underpinnings of their societies. And they correctly see Israel as fighting the same enemy that threatens them.


Congressman Ryan Zinke who proposed a bill to not allow Palestinians in the USA (source: Shutterstock)
On the American side, one need only to follow the headlines from Capitol Hill to know that mass immigration is the biggest wedge in American politics today. The demands from Republican lawmakers and media influencers to shut down the southern border and get control of immigration are heard daily.

Donald Trump, the runaway frontrunner for the Republican nomination who also leads any potential Democratic nominee in recent polls, has made mass deportation of illegal migrants and shutting down the border a major centerpiece of his platform for his next term in office. Put simply, for the majority of Americans, mass immigration is the most urgent issue of the day.

THE CALLS by Israeli leaders for the West to assist in resettling Gazans in their countries are both tone-deaf and just plain wrong

A win-win solution?
The day after Gila Gamliel’s piece appeared in these pages, Charlie Kirk, the leader of the influential Turning Point USA organization and one of the most significant figures on the American right, posted his criticism of this call by Israeli leaders. After accurately summarizing Gamliel’s proposal, Kirk wrote on X:

“Gamliel says this would be a ‘win-win’ solution: A win for Israelis, and a win for Gazans who can live in richer countries. Okay, but how is it a win for us? It’s not, of course. Gamliel is trying to guilt the West into taking terrorists and terrorist supporters off of Israel’s hands and making them our problem instead. I support Israel, so I say this in all goodwill: If members of the Israeli government keep putting out op-eds like this, they will destroy their support among Western conservatives.”


FORT WASHINGTON, MD / USA – February 26 2020: Charlie Kirk, Turning Point USA speaking to attendees at CPAC 2020
And Kirk is not the only staunch supporter of Israel who has expressed this misgiving. I am someone who is in constant contact with political and faith leaders on the American right. The day that Danon and Ben-Barak’s piece ran in The Wall Street Journal, I was contacted by a number of leaders who expressed the same sentiment.

But it’s not only about messaging. Resettling Gazans, who, as Gamliel points out, mostly support Jihadist ideology, in Western nations is destructive to Israel’s national security in the long run as well.

Considering what we are seeing in the streets of London, New York, and on college campuses, do we really think it’s a good idea to ship the Middle East’s problems to the West? How will this help stem the tide of the growing anti-Israel sentiment in these countries?

I shared these concerns with Gamliel’s office. Her response is worth noting. She emphasized that her call for the resettlement of Gazans should not be understood as a call for Western nations to take them in. Her intent is that the international community should work with Israel to find creative solutions to this problem.

Israeli leaders must adjust their messaging on this point. And the pivot should not be difficult to make.

Rather than calling for resettlement of Gazans in Western countries, pressure should be brought to bear on the Arab-Muslim world to take responsibility for a problem that they helped create and have always refused to help solve.

Further destruction of Western culture and alienation of those who are sympathetic to Israel’s battle against Jihadist Islam must not be the answer to our problems.

The writer, a rabbi, is director of Israel365action.com, a new grassroots Israel-advocacy movement, and is co-host of the Shoulder to Shoulder podcast.
*This article was originally published on jpost.com
https://www.israel365news.com/379810/resettling-gazans-in-the-west-is-not-the-answer/?

https://theisraelbible.com/vayishlach-the-sciatic-nerve-and-the-eternity-of-israel/?
The Sciatic Nerve and the Eternity of Israel
Dec 8, 2022
עַל־כֵּ֡ן לֹֽא־יֹאכְל֨וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶת־גִּ֣יד הַנָּשֶׁ֗ה אֲשֶׁר֙ עַל־כַּ֣ף הַיָּרֵ֔ךְ עַ֖ד הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה כִּ֤י נָגַע֙ בְּכַף־יֶ֣רֶךְ יַעֲקֹ֔ב בְּגִ֖יד הַנָּשֶֽׁה׃

That is why the children of Yisrael to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Yaakov's hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle.

al KAYN lo yo-kh'-LU v'-NAY yis-ra-AYL et GEED ha-na-SHEH a-SHER al KAF ha-ya-RAYKH ad ha-YOM ha-ZEH, KEE na-GA b'-KHAF YE-rekh ya-a-KOV b'-GEED ha-na-SHEH.

Genesis 32:33
In this week’s Torah portion, Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4 – 36:43), we read of the famous struggle between Jacob and a “man” the night before Jacob’s much-anticipated encounter with his brother Esau. The man turned out to be an angel. During the struggle, Jacob’s hip joint was dislocated, causing him to emerge from the confrontation with a limp.

“Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he wrenched Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the socket of his hip was strained as he wrestled with him…

The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping on his hip. That is why the children of Israel to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Jacob’s hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle. (Genesis 32:25-26, 32-33)

As a result of this incident, Jews are forbidden from eating the “thigh muscle” of an animal, otherwise known as the sciatic nerve. It seems that this commandment is a commemoration of the struggle between Jacob and the “man.”

What if the “man” had struck Jacob on the arm or the head? Would the Bible have then stated a prohibition against eating arms or heads of animals? Why did the “man” just happen to strike Jacob at that exact spot on his body? The location of the wound is obviously significant enough that it results in a commandment relating to that specific limb of the body. Moreover, the Torah does not include other commandments that commemorate events from the lives of the patriarchs in Genesis. For example, there is no biblically mandated law commanded in the wake of the binding of Isaac or the sale of Joseph.

What is the meaning of this unusual prohibition?

The Sefer Hachinuch, a 13th-century book that discusses the meaning and basic rules for each of the 613 commandments in the Torah, discusses the prohibition against eating the sciatic nerve:

“The root [meaning] of this commandment is to serve as a reminder to Israel that, although they will suffer many hardships in the exiles at the hands of the nations and at the hands of the children of Esau, they can be confident that they will never be lost. Rather, their offspring and name will always arise, and a redeemer will arrive and redeem them from hardship…. The reason for this symbol is that the angel who fought with our forefather Jacob – which according to tradition was the ministering angel of Esau – attempted to uproot Jacob and his progeny from the world. “He saw that he could not defeat him,” (v.26) and hurt him by striking his hip. So too, Esau’s progeny afflicts the progeny of Jacob. At the end [of days] there will be redemption for [Jacob’s progeny] from them.” (Sefer Hachinuch, commandment 3)

Why, in his attempt to “uproot Jacob and his progeny”, did the angel strike Jacob’s hip? What was he trying to do?

The Hebrew word for “hip” used here is yerech. Yerech usually refers to a hip or thigh. Interestingly, the word yerech also has another meaning, namely, it is used in many verses in the Bible as a euphemistic reference to the loins, the reproductive organ of man. Here are a few examples:

The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all; Joseph was already in Egypt. – Exodus 1:5

He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives. – Judges 8:30

In these verses offspring or descendants are referred to as yotzei yerech, literally, “those who emerge from the thigh.” (see also Genesis 46:26)

Based on this, I would like to suggest that the angel of Esau who wrestled with Jacob was attempting to cut off Jacob’s ability to reproduce, to destroy his future. In the words of the Sefer Hachinuch cited above, he “attempted to uproot Jacob and his progeny from the world.”

Esau was the grandfather of the archenemy of the people of Israel, Amalek. Later, after the Exodus from Egypt, the nation of Amalek, Esau’s descendants, attacked the children of Israel (Exodus 17:8). In a fascinating commentary on this episode, the Jewish sages of the Midrash homiletically described the attack as follows:

“Rabbi Hinena bar Shikla taught: ‘What were the Amalekites doing [when they attacked Israel]? They were cutting off Israel’s circumcisions and casting them heavenward and saying [to God] “Is this what you have chosen? Take for yourself what you have chosen!”‘” (Midrash Tanhuma, Ki Tetzei:10)

It is important to note that Midrashic comments such as this are not meant to be taken literally. The ancient Jewish sages used this kind of embellishment of Biblical stories as a method of commentary. The sages would routinely “add” details to the stories in the Bible to highlight lessons they wished to derive from the narratives. Why did the sages suggest that Amalek was castrating the children of Israel when they attacked them?

Let’s put these two Biblical stories together. Here in Genesis 32, the angel of Esau wrestled with Jacob. This confrontation foreshadowed the eternal struggle between Esau’s offspring and Jacob’s. In the course of this struggle, Esau’s angel struck Jacob on the inner thigh. Centuries later, shortly after the children of Israel left Egypt in Exodus 17, Esau’s descendants attacked the descendants of Jacob in almost the same spot on the body.

What does all this mean?

The special covenant of Abraham that binds Israel to God is made through circumcision. Circumcision, the removal of the foreskin, declares that even the most physical, most natural elements of a person must be consecrated to God. Circumcision says that there is no area of life too natural or too physical to be controlled by His will.

Rabbi Judah Leow, the great 16th-century European rabbi known as The Maharal of Prague, explained the reason God commanded that circumcision must be done on the eighth day. Seven days represent creation – the natural world. The eighth day represents that which is beyond the natural creation, beyond the seven days. Circumcision happens on the eighth day because the covenant with God places Israel beyond the reach of the natural order.

Circumcision represents the idea that through a relationship with God – a covenant – Israel rises above nature. Esau rules only within nature. Esau-Amalek’s only hope for victory over the supernatural people of Israel is for Israel to abandon its supernatural covenant with God. Only if the circumcision is uprooted can Esau win.

The prohibition against eating the sciatic nerve serves as an eternal reminder that, although Jacob and his offspring can be maimed by Esau – although Israel may often limp through history because of oppression at Esau’s hand – their future is never in doubt. Esau’s angel missed the mark. Jacob’s ability to reproduce, Jacob’s future, was not destroyed. Jacob’s offspring, the nation of Israel – through our special covenant with God – is eternal and supernatural.

Rabbi Pesach Wolicki serves as Executive Director of Ohr Torah Stone’s Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation, and he is cohost of the Shoulder to Shoulder podcast

War-time Miracles
But Moshe said to the people, “Have no fear! Stand by, and witness the deliverance which Hashem will work for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you will never see again. Exodus 14:13EXODUS14:13(THE ISRAEL BIBLE)
Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz
GAZA WAR
NOVEMBER 29, 2023
6 MIN READ
Home » War-time Miracles
GAZA GOD HAMAS IDF - ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCE IRAN ISRAEL MIRACLE PALESTINIANS TERRORISM
Amidst the tragedy of war are uplifting true stories of inspiration.
Rabbi Yigal Cohen related a story of a miracle that happened during the current war that soon spread. According to the rabbi, a group of soldiers in Gaza had a break in their fighting, and some of the soldiers took the opportunity to sit and have a meal together while others were chatting. Some of the soldiers were cleaning their weapons, a routine and necessary task that requires constant attention.
Soldiers are trained to treat any weapon as if it is loaded and should never be pointed at something they do not want to shoot. Before cleaning, a rifle must be checked which requires removing the magazine, cocking it twice, and pulling the trigger while pointing the weapon away from any people. This should eject any bullet that was in the chamber and if in the unlikely chance a bullet is still in the chamber, it should fire, leaving the weapon empty.

In this case, one soldier checked his weapon. He removed the magazine and cocked it twice. No bullet ejected. In theory, there should not have been any bullets in the chamber. But adhering to the safety routine, he pointed the weapon towards an empty field and pulled the trigger.
To his surprise, the gun fired. The soldiers were unaware that a pair of terrorists had just exited a tunnel in the adjacent field. One terrorist was aiming a rocket propelled grenade (RPG)  at the group of resting soldiers. The stray bullet hit RPG, causing it to explode and neutralizing both terrorists.  
Israeli troops operating in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, Nov. 28, 2023. Credit: IDF. (Source: JNS)
“This was clearly a miraculous occurrence,” Rabbi Cohen noted. “We might think we are  the ones fighting the battle. But actually God is fighting for us.  God is doing the work for us.”
The rabbi cited the verse in the Bible:
“Hashem will battle for you; you hold your peace!” Exodus 14:14
The rabbi also presented a video of an IDF Seren (captain) relating yet another story from the battlefield. The Seren told of a group of soldiers traveling through the battlefield in Gaza in an armored personnel carrier (APC). The Major in the APC told his driver to advance. For some inexplicable reason, the driver put the APC into reverse and drove backwards. The officer repeated his order to drive forward and advance.
The  captain relating the story noted that it was bizarre for a soldier to  ignore a direct order from a Major.
“Why would he do the exact opposite?” he asked.
Suddenly, the soldiers in the jeep felt a bump and heard a grinding noise. The jeep had just run over a terrorist who, unbeknownst to them, had succeeded in sneaking up on the jeep and was about to attach an explosive device to the metal body.“This is a tactic used by the terrorists and can, unfortunately, be successful,” the captain noted. “But in this case, there was no longer a terrorist or an explosive so the IDF soldiers were safe. You might think that the driver saw the terrorist but in these APCs, the driver can only see forward, and even that, not very well. So why did he go backwards?”
At this, the captain pointed up to heaven and nodded.
“The driver had a navigator guiding him from above,” the captain said.
He then related another story from the battlefield. He noted that one of the more horrible aspects of war is friendly fire, which is when troops fire on their brothers-in-arms.
IDF soldiers secure the shore in the northern Gaza Strip, Nov. 21, 2023. Photo by Matanya Tausig/Flash90.
“With the amount of troops and the conditions in Gaza, it’s nearly impossible to avoid friendly fire,” the captain said. “Thousands of troops, different units, crowded areas with buildings that can hide terrorists or our own troops, so many different objectives with unclear battle lines, darkness, fog, and the soldiers are under enormous pressure. We work very hard to avoid this, working to know exactly where everyone is at all times, and when they can open fire. But this is Gaza and every soldier has a bullet in the chamber, ready to fire at all times.”

“In one case, a force from the 51st Battalion of the Golani Brigade accidentally fired on two of our troops. They fired with Katlan [a remote controlled Browning heavy machine gun] mounted externally on a Namer APC.”

“A Katlan is connected to a computer and is not aimed by a soldier. It doesn’t miss,” the captain related. “One of the soldiers who was fired at showed me a hole in his pants that was made by the bullet. I was shocked. A Katlan has a huge shell and doesn’t miss, especially at a range of five meters.”

“The soldier agreed, but said the Browning malfunctioned and they replaced it with a MAG [Belgian-made 7.62 mm belt-fed machine gun]. But I was still shocked. Even with a MAG, survival is unlikely at that range. The soldier explained that when they switched to the MAG, they didn’t have time to zero it in. I should have died but I only suffered a hole in my pocket. I wasn’t even wounded.”

The soldier then took a small book out of the pocket that had the bullet hole. The book was Orot HaTeshuva [Lights of Repentance] by Rabbi Avraham Kook. The captain noted his surprise.

“It is crazy to think that a soldier leaves for war carrying a book into battle,” the captain said. “But the contrast is amazing. What does the enemy hold in their pockets? What do they believe? What do they do?”
“But the soldier explained that the bullet passed through his pocket without injuring him or touching the book that was in the pocket. It is even more than a miracle. It is written that God performs miracles when necessary.
An Israeli soldier during morning prayers near the border with Lebanon, Oct. 25, 2023. Photo by Michael Giladi/Flash90.
The captain quoted Psalms:
A thousand may fall at your left side, ten thousand at your right, but it shall not reach you. Psalms 91:7

After Delay, 13 More Israelis Freed on 2nd Day of Truce With Hamas

On Saturday, the 13 captives released the previous day continued to be reunited with their families.
READ MORE »
https://www.israel365news.com/379596/after-delay-13-more-israelis-freed-on-2nd-day-of-truce-with-hamas/?

Archaeologists Discover Ancient Sling Stone Factory
Israel Antiquities Authority reported evidence for warfare and organized arming in the Southern Levant yet discovered, showing that there was mass production of weapons as long as 7,200 years ago.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/379607/archaeologists-discover-ancient-sling-stone-factory/?


Pope Francis Describes Israel’s War on Hamas as Genocidal “Terrorism”
No media representatives were present at the meetings but members of the Palestinian delegation told the media that the pope had described Israel’s actions as “genocide”.
READ MORE »
https://www.israel365news.com/379604/pope-francis-describes-israels-war-on-hamas-as-genocidal-terrorism/?


Argentina's New President "Thinking About Converting to Judaism"
Javier Milei told La Nacion, “I don’t go to church. I go to synagogue. I don’t follow a priest. I follow my rabbi. I learn Torah. I’m known internationally as a friend of Israel. And as someone who learns Torah, I’m almost Jewish. I’m just missing the ‘blood covenant.'”
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/379623/argentinas-new-president-thinking-about-converting-to-judaism/?



The Streaming of the Nations
This prophecy of the end times describes the multitudes among the nations who will visit Jerusalem and worship God there. Take note of the verb used at the end of the verse to describe this gathering of the nations in Jerusalem: and all the nations will stream to it.
READ MORE » https://theisraelbible.com/the-streaming-of-the-nations/?


[WATCH] Pastor John Hagee at the March for Israel at the National Mall in Washington D.C.

"Those of us standing here, and millions of others like us, we were not there for the horrors of the past but we are here now and we stand shoulder to shoulder with you, the nation of Israel and the over 240 held captive! Israel, you are not alone today, tomorrow, or forever!"
WATCH » https://www.israel365news.com/video/pastor-john-hagee-at-the-march-for-israel-at-the-national-mall-in-washington-d-c/?


Netanyahu: Mossad ordered to kill Hamas leaders ‘wherever they are’
The terror organization's leaders "are living on borrowed time," said Israeli Defense MInister Yoav Gallant.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/379588/netanyahu-mossad-ordered-to-kill-hamas-leaders-wherever-they-are/?


Hamas Accused of Violating Ceasefire Deal by Separating Mother, Child
Twelve-year-old Hila Rotem Shoshani's mother, Raya, was not among the 13 Israeli hostages released on Saturday.
READ MORE »
Israeli-Owned Ship Attacked by Iranian Drone in Indian Ocean
The attack on the CMA CGM Symi caused no injuries.
READ MORE »https://www.israel365news.com/379628/hamas-accused-of-violating-ceasefire-deal-by-separating-mother-child/?


The Homecoming for Israel; Following the 2nd Yom Kippur War
by Bishop Jerry L. Bowers
What shall we remember when we look back on the 2nd Yom Kippur War? History is in the making as this war comes to an end. What will those who were taken captive remember?
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/379616/the-homecoming-for-israel-following-the-2nd-yom-kippur-war/?


‘Antizionism’ is the Most Lethal Form of Antisemitism Out There
by Ben Cohen
What we are dealing with here is not “criticism” of Israel’s policies, but outrage that Jews are even in a position where they can make policy!
READ MORE »https://www.israel365news.com/379619/antizionism-is-the-most-lethal-form-of-antisemitism-out-there/?
[ICYMI] Biblical Commandment Gets New Look Thanks to Rising Jew-Hatred

Jews have been hanging mezuzot on their doorposts since the commandment was first given at Mount Sinai but the Biblical commandment has taken on a new look due to the recent horrifying wave of Jew hatred sweeping the globe.
READ MORE » https://www.israel365news.com/379562/biblical-commandment-gets-new-look-thanks-to-rising-jew-hatred/?

Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

Jacob then made a vow, saying, “If God remains with me, protecting me on this journey that I am making, and giving me bread to eat and clothing to wear,
וַיִּדַּר יַעֲקֹב נֶדֶר לֵאמֹר אִם־יִהְיֶה אֱלֹהִים עִמָּדִי וּשְׁמָרַנִי בַּדֶּרֶךְ הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי הוֹלֵךְ וְנָתַן־לִי לֶחֶם לֶאֱכֹל וּבֶגֶד לִלְבֹּשׁ
Genesis 28:20 (The Israel Bible, p. 72)
vai-yi-DAR ya-a-KOV NE-der lay-MOR: im yih-YEH e-lo-HEEM i-ma-DEE ush-ma-RA-nee ba-DE-rekh ha-ZEH a-SHER a-no-KHEE ho-LAYKH, v'-na-tan LEE LE-khem le-e-KHOL u-VE-ged lil-BOSH
Jacob’s Vow: Opting Into God’s Plan
By Rabbi Pesach Wolicki
At the beginning of this week’s Torah portion, Vayeitzei (Genesis 28:10-32:3), we find Jacob on the run after leaving home in the wake of the events surrounding his acquisition of his father’s blessings. Jacob’s brother, Esau, vowed to kill Jacob after the death of their father Isaac. At their mother Rebekah’s behest, Jacob left his family home for the home of Laban, Rebekah’s brother.

Traveling alone, Jacob stopped for the night and had a dream. In his dream, Jacob saw the famous vision of a ladder to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. And in this dream, God promised to protect Jacob on his journey.


Early the next morning, Jacob awoke and made a vow to God saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey”?

Why did Jacob make this vow? Didn’t we just read a few verses earlier that God promised that He would protect Jacob on this journey and bring him back to the land? Why does it seem that he needs a guarantee from God that He will keep His word? It appears that Jacob is not confident in God’s promise of protection, otherwise, what is the point of the vow?
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
https://theisraelbible.com/jacobs-vow-opting-into-gods-plan/?

https://www.israel365news.com/video/ex-hamas-supporter-i-hated-jews-and-israel-but-now-i-condemn-hamasscreenshot-source-j-tv/?
Ex-Hamas Supporter: “I Hated Jews and Israel, But Now I Condemn Hamas”Video Manager
A Must-Watch: Sohail Ahmed is a former Muslim extremist who from a young age supported Hamas, hated the West, and even dreamed up a terror attack in London. Ollie speaks to Sohail about his journey from extremism to deradicalisation, as well as Sohail’s insights on the current Israel-Hamas war.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MW2NS7jGR0s
Ex-Hamas Supporter: "I Hated Jews and Israel, But Now I Condemn Hamas"

Let them praise the LORD for His steadfast love, His wondrous deeds for mankind;
יוֹדוּ לַיהֹוָה חַסְדּוֹ וְנִפְלְאוֹתָיו לִבְנֵי אָדָם
Psalms 107:8 (The Israel Bible, p. 1603)
yo-DU la-do-NAI khas-DO v'-nif-l'-o-TAV liv-NAY a-DAM
A Psalm for Thanksgiving
By Shira Schechter
In the autumn of 1621, a group of Pilgrims and Native Americans gathered to celebrate an event that would become a cornerstone of American tradition: the first Thanksgiving. Led by William Bradford, the Governor of the Plymouth Colony and leader of the Mayflower expedition, this historic feast not only marked a successful harvest but expressed a profound sense of thankfulness—a sentiment at the heart of Jewish tradition.

Bradford, a man of deep faith, often turned to the Bible for guidance and inspiration. He and his fellow Mayflower passengers perceived their 66-day voyage as a reenactment of the Biblical exodus, drawing a parallel between their departure from England, which they saw as a "Modern Day Egypt," and their arrival in America, their "Modern Day Promised Land." During the first Thanksgiving celebration, Bradford quoted from Psalm 107, a psalm of thanksgiving.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
https://theisraelbible.com/a-psalm-for-thanksgiving/?

https://www.israel365news.com/379449/god-is-coming-for-you-rashida/?
Shalom Zahara, Please enjoy today's Daily Inspiration from Israel.

He struck down many nations and slew numerous kings
שֶׁהִכָּה גּוֹיִם רַבִּים וְהָרַג מְלָכִים עֲצוּמִים
Psalms 135:10 (The Israel Bible, p. 1634)
she-hi-KAH go-YIM ra-BEEM v'-ha-RAG m'-la-KHEEM a-tzu-MEEM
God is Coming for You, Rashida
By Rabbi Elie Mischel
Every day, we are treated to sickening footage of yet another violent anti-Israel and antisemitic rally. Every day, we watch thousands of people shouting their support for the vicious terror group Hamas and screaming their hatred of Israel and the Jewish people. If given the opportunity, you can be sure that these lowlifes would murder Jews. I watch these so-called “mostly peaceful protests,” and my blood boils.

But there is one vile antisemite in particular who I hate - yes, hate - with a unique passion: Rashida Tlaib.

Rashida Tlaib uses her bully pulpit as a US Congresswoman to influence millions of people to hate Israel, the Jewish people and the biblical foundations of America. She is the leader of the pro-terror caucus in Congress, where she serves as spokeswoman for Hamas and other anti-Israel terror groups. Reports have proven that Tlaib has significant ties to Hamas, and is a longstanding supporter of the terror group.

Her sickening cruelty is hard to fathom. Following the brutal rape, torture and slaughter of over 1,200 Jews on October 7th, a FoxNews reporter repeatedly asked Tlaib if she condemned the murder and beheading of 40 Jewish babies. She refused to comment.

For all of this, Rashida will have to pay.