One Messiah Two Comings - Afrikaans

April 1, 2025

Een Messias, Twee Verskynings

En toe Hy nog saam met hulle was, het Hy aan hulle bevel gegee om nie van Jerusalem weg te gaan nie, maar om te wag op die belofte van die Vader, wat julle, het Hy gesê, van My gehoor het.

Want Johannes het wel met water gedoop, maar julle sal met die Heilige Gees gedoop word nie lank na hierdie dae nie. Die wat bymekaar gekom het, vra Hom toe en sê: Here, gaan U in hierdie tyd die koninkryk vir Israel weer oprig? En Hy antwoord hulle: Dit kom julle nie toe om die tye of geleenthede te weet wat die Vader deur Sy eie mag bepaal het nie; maar julle sal krag ontvang wanneer die Heilige Gees oor julle kom, en julle sal My getuies wees in Jerusalem sowel as in die hele Judéa en Samaria en tot aan die uiterste van die aarde. (Hand.1:4?8) Die mense met Restorasie denke vra die vraag: "Here gaan U in hierdie tyd die koninkryk weer oprig?"

Die term, "Restorasie" word vandag weer oral gehoor: Die heropbouing van die koninkryk. Hierdie term egter word net een keer in die Nuwe Testament gebruik, nie in die konteks van herstelling van die triomferende kerk nie, maar van Israel. Hierdie beweging se doelwit is om drie dinge te herstel wat, om mee te begin, egter nooit bestaan het nie!

Die eerste ding wat hulle probeer herstel is 'n uitgawe van die eskatologie, 'n oordrewe verwerklikheid. Dit word genoem: Die heersers (Dominionism) of oorwinnaars. Dit is die dwaaldenke dat die kerk sal heers vir Christus vóór Christus se wederkoms en die oprigting van Sy Koninkryk.

Die waarheid egter, is dat dat daar eers 'n groot afval gaan kom en dan sal die kerk aan die einde wel triomfeer, maar, dit is absoluut afhanklik van die wederkoms van Christus. "En die God van vrede sal die Satan spoedig onder julle voete verbrysel." (Rom.16:20) Daniël praat ook spesifiek en reguit van die vervolging wat in die laaste dae sal plaasvind.??"Ek het gesien dat hierdie horing (Hy praat hier van die Antichris) oorlog voer teen die heiliges en hulle oorwin todat die Oue van Dae kom en aan die heiliges van die Allerhoogste reg verskaf is en die bepaalde tyd gekom het dat die heiliges die koninkryk in besit geneem het. (Dan.7:21?22) Die Koninkryk nou Teologie maak valslik daarop aanspraak dat die heiliges eers in beheer van hierdie koninkryk moet kom vóór Christus se wederkoms terwyl die Woord van die Here dit baie duidelik stel dat dit eers gaan gebeur ná die wederkoms van Christus! Hierdie dwaling het egter al verskeie kere, meestal by draai punte in wêreld geskiedenis, in sekere tydperke van die kerk geskiedenis sy kop uitgesteek. Gedurende die agteruitgang van die Romeinse Ryk was dit bekend as Montanisme, (2 N.C.) wat dieselfde chaotiese toestand veroorsaak het in die gemeentes as wat ons dit vandag weer sien met die moderne Restorasie beweging waar die klem weer verskuif het na wonders en tekens wat mense mislei en in hierdie beweging intrek sonder enige Bybelse Teologiese kennis.

Valse Profesiee

Gedurende die herlewings tydperk was dit die Munster Anababtiste wat die volgeling was van die profete van Zwickow?Hierdie was 'n groep wat dieselfde dinge gedoen het as wat die Kansas profete vandag doen??, }}HULLE PROFETEER DINGE WAT NIE GEBEUR NIE!

Die tweede ding wat hierdie beweging probeer om te herstel is die beskouing van die profetiese gesag, wat totaal onbybels is. Die Bybelse siening van 'n profetiese gesag is dat 'n profeet verantwoordelik is vir wat hy sê. So was daar 'n persoon van die 'Vineyard' beweging wat beweer dat die Nuwe Testament leer dat ons net gedeeltelik in profesieë kan reg wees. En so kan John Wimber en Paul Caine (En andere) profeteer in die Naam van die HERE en net half reg en half verkeerd wees en nog steeds Bybelse profete wees?!! Hierdie idee is absoluut vals en uiters gevaarlik, sulke mense is mislei en hulle bedrieg en mislei onskuldige mense.

Derdens probeer hulle om 'n uitgawe van Apostoliese gesag weer in te stel wat ook onbybels is. Apostoliese gesag volgens die Skrifte was hoofsaaklik Skriftuurlik, en die vraag is: Bestaan die Apostoliese gesag, soos wat dit aan die twaalf Apostels gegee is, nog net so in die kerk van vandag? Ja, beslis, dit bestaan en word bewaar deur die Heilige Gees in die Geskrifte van die Apostels en van Paulus.

Daar was ook ander soorte Apostels, kerkbouers en bediening onder hulle, maar soos wat ons dit in die Nuwe Testament sien, was die Apostoliese gesag meervoudig.

Die Heilige Gees sê: Sonder nou Bárnabas en Saulus vir My af vir die werk waarvoor Ek julle geroep het" (Hand.13:2) Jesus stuur die Apostels twee twee uit, en so is Skriftuurlike Gesag altyd meervoudig.

Die model egter, in die huiskerk skemas van die restorasie bewegings, is gebasseer op 'n piramiede gesag struktuur waar die apostel die hoofsweep is. Wat hulle dus hier het is 'n Apostoliese gesag wat niks anders as 'n tipe van 'n swaarhand leierskap is nie (Niko?Laïete) Skriftuurlike Apostoliese gesag word altyd gekenmerk aan verantwoordelikheid, en Paulus en Barnabas was altyd verantwoordelik aan die gesag uit Antiochië, en bo dit is die Bybelse Apostoliese gesag gekenmerk deur die onderdanigheid aan mekaar soos in Hand. 15, en dit was nooit 'n eenman vertoning nie.

Wat die restorasie beweging vandag beskou as apostoliese gesag is niks ander as swaarhand leierskap idees wat gebasseer is op Gnostisme. Hierdie mense maak aanspraak dat net hulle 'n subjektiewe openbaring of "kennis" (Gnosis) het, en as 'n persoon 'n saak nie kan insien nie, dan maak hulle daarop aanspraak dat die mens mislei is! Waarlike hernuwing of restorasie het niks te doen met die kerk nie maar met die heropbou van Israel.

Die vervangings beweging het die idee dat die kerk in die plek van Israel gekom het, en ontken enige betrokkenheid van Israel en die Jode in die eindtyd profesieë, dit is ook totaal onbybels en onskriftuurlik. Rom.11 leer dat Israel die "Wortel" is, en die wortel dra die boom, nie die boom die wortel nie, die wortel is onder die grond en omdat dit nie gesien kan word nie, beteken dit nie dat dit nie daar is nie. As die boom nie 'n wortel het nie sal hy doodgaan. Dus, as dit klaar is met Israel, dan is dit ook klaar met die kerk. As God Israel verwerp het omrede hulle sondes en ongehoorsaamheid, dan het onseVader net soveel rede om die kerk te verwerp, indien nie meer nie! Die sondes van Israel kan baie maklik in en

deur die hele kerk dispensasie waargeneem word asook die offering van kinderjies aan afgode soos wat ons vadag sien in die skreiende groot getalle aborsies wat uitgevoer word in die Weste, die sogenaamde "Christen demokrasie??"

Rom.11 leer dat die Heidende wat tot bekering kom, en Jesus Christus aanvaar as hulle Verlosser, die Jode vervang wat Hom verwerp, hulle is egter net ingeënt in die takke, maar die wortel bly nog steeds Israel. Alles onder die grond is die Ou Testament Israel, en dit is nie 'n vervanging nie, en dit alles is net 'n restorasie van Israel, die wortel is en bly steeds Israel.

Die oorspronklike takke was Joods en net so was die eerste Christene ook Jode. Die skrywers van die Nuwe Testament was Jode en die laaste Christene sal ook Jode wees.

Koning Jesus praat van die omvattende herstel van Israel in die Berg Rede?Jerusalem sal vertrap word deur die nasies totdat die tye van die nasies vervul is (Luk.21:24) Koning Jesus gebruik dieselfde woorde wat Paulus gebruik het in Rom.11:25 behalwe dat Christus gepraat het van Israel as 'n volk. Die tye van die nasies word in Rom.11 bespreek in die konteks van verlossing van Israel, maar in die bergrede (Luk.21) is dit Israel in die Eindtyd. Die finale betekenis van die tye van die nasies wat tot 'n einde kom is gebonde aan die profesie van Daniël. God se uiteindelike reddings plan vir die wêreld berus op die verlossing van Israel en die vervulling van die Doelwit van onse HERE, profeties is dit die herstel of restorasie van Israel. Hier is 'n nasionale aspek in bespreking, meer belangrik,'n verlossings plan soos in Rom.11:15: "Want as hulle verwerping die versoening van die wêreld is, wat sal hulle aanneming anders wees as lewe uit die dode?"

God Se Plan

Die Nuwe Testament praat van herstel, nie die planne van die bewegings van vandag nie, maar 'n Plan in die konteks wat God het vir die restorasie van Israel waardeur Hy die die Nasies sal seën. Die Hebreeuse woord vir Heidene en Nasies is dieselfde nl.:'Goy'

God gaan die kerk in die laaste dae deur die Jode seën, en al hierdie dinge wat in die Midde Ooste gebeur is een van die tekens en die bewys dat Christus se koms voor die deur is.

Vandag is daar baie valse leraars in die Liggaam van Christus wat baie Christene mislei deur aan hulle te vertel dat hierdie tekens nie waar is nie, wat veroorsaak dat die uitverkorenes onvoorbereid sal wees!

Daar is twee hoof redes waarom die Jode Jesus as hulle Messias verwerp. Een van die ongelukkige redes is die geskiedenis van die Anti Semitiese Christene wat normaalweg deur die Roomse Katolieke, en die Oosterse Ortodokse kerke uitgedra is, maar, met die ongelukkige uitsondering van Martin Luther wie se werke Adolf Hitler geïinspireer het by sy skrywe van "Mein Kampf". Luther het geleer dat die Jode in 'n kraal vasgekeer, en by die punt van 'n mes geforseer moes word om Jesus Christus te bely. Hy sê: "Ons, die Duitse volk, sal die blaam dra as ons nie die Jode uitmoor om te bewys dat ons Christene is nie!!" Die tweede rede waarom die Jode Christus sal verwerp is omdat Jesus nie wêreld vrede gebring het nie en Israel se vyande onderwerp het nie, en die Messiaanse Koninkryk in Jerusalem nie ingestel het nie, en ook nie geregtigheid en vooruitgang en rus en vrede vir die nasies gebring het nie.

As Christus dan die Messias is, waar is die Messiaanse ryk in die karakter van Dawid dan? Die antwoord is in Daniël 9. Die Messias moes kom en sterwe vóór die vernietiging van die Tweede Tempel, en dit was nie die doel van die Messias om al hierdie dinge te bring by Sy eerste koms nie. Die doel van Christus se eerste koms was om te handel met die hoof probleem naamlik: Sonde.

Christus sal met Sy twééde koms wêreld vrede bring! Daniël 9:6 sê vir ons dat die einde met oorstroming, oorloë en vasbeslote verwoesting sal wees. Volgens Judaisme (Die Midrash Bereshith op bladsy 243 van die Warsaw uitgawe, moes die Messias in 33V.C die wêreld verlaat het en dit word ook geondersteun deur die Talmoed Skrifte wat bevestig dat die Messias moes kom en sterwe vóór die verwoesting van die Tweede Tempel.

Ons lees dat die Sanhedrin (Joodse hoogeplaasdes) gehuil het en gesê: "wee ons! Waar is die Messias? Hy moes teen hierdie tyd al gekom het!"

Rabbi Leopold Cohen, 'n baie senior ultra ortodokse rabbi het gepoog om die boodskap van Daniël 9 te verstaan. Hy het twee dinge in die outydse Rabbynse skrifte gevind. Een is dat die Messias alreeds moes gekom het, en tweedens is dat daar 'n vloek rus op almal wat Daniël 9 lees, en so het Rabbi Leopold Cohen die enigste eerbare ding gedoen wat hy kon, hy het 'n Babtiste prediker geword! Dit is relatief maklik om met die onderwerp van Christen Anti Semitisme te deel. Die vraag van 'n Jood is: "Hoe kan jy van my verwag om in die Messias van die Christene to glo as julle Christene my grootouers uitgemoor het??" Om hierdie probleem op te los moet daar vir die Jode van die regte Jesus Christus vertel word??? Jesus die Jood,??Rabbi Yeshua Ben Yosef van Nasaret, en herhinner hulle daaraan dat die Jode ook hulle eie profete in die naam van Moses vermoor het. Hulle het Jeremia in die tronk gegooi, hulle het Jesaja middeldeur gesaag, en Sagaria vermoor! Sal julle Moses verwerp vir wat die Jode in sy naam gedoen het? Sal julle Moses verwerp omrede 'n ortodokse Jood 'n tyd gelede wat met 'n outomatiese wapen in 'n moskee in Hebron ingegaan het en vyftig Moslems vermoor het? Moet Moses veroordeel word vir moorde wat in sy naam gepleeg is? Net so kan Christus ook nie veroordeel word vir wat Christene in Sy Naam gedoen het nie! Ons het Moses en die Torah aanvaar op die basis wat Moses gespreek het. Kan ons Christus aanvaar of verwerp op die basis wat Hy in die Nuwe Testament gedoen en opgeteken het? Die ander onderwerp naamlik; Hoekom het die Messias nie wêreld vrede gebring nie, is 'n ander bespreking. Vir Christus om die Messias te wees, moes Hy die Messiaanse Profesieë van die Ou Testament vervul. Daar is twee tipes Messiaanse Profesieë in die Ou Testament: "Die Lydende Dienskneg" Profesieë (In Jesaja en die Psalms van Dawid) en ook die "Dawid Messias" wat die Ere Koning sal wees wat al die vyande van God sal onderwerp aan Sy Gesag en wat wêreld wye vrede sal bring en sal regeer uit Jerusalem. As Jesus Christus nie die Messias van die Jode is nie, dan is Hy ook nie die Christus van die Kerk nie, want albei is dieselfde.

Christus en Messias is die "Gesalfde Een". Christus het nog nie al die Ou Testamentiese Profesieë vervul nie, Hy het nog net die "seun van Dawid" Profesieë in 'n geestelike wyse vervul, en nie in 'n historiese wyse nie. Vir Christus om die Messias te wees moet Hy al die Profesieë vervul. Die Lydende Messias word genoem: HaMashiach Ben Yosef; Messias, die seun van Josef, en die Ere Koning is HaMashiach Ben Dawid; Messias, die seun van Dawid.

Palm Sondag (Palm Sunday)

Paasfees was een van die drie Joodse feeste waarop hulle 'n lied gesing het by name: Die "Hallel Rabah" (Psalm 113?118) Die klem van hierdie lied is: Hosanna, Hosanna, geseënd is Hy wat kom in die Naam van die HERE, seëninge van die huis van die Here. Ere en dank aan die Here want Hy is goed, want Sy goedertierendheid is verewig, Hosanna. Hosanna. Die Jode is veronderstel om hierdie lied op die paasfees met wuiwende hande te sing, dit was ook bedoel om op die Loofhutte fees gesing te word met wuiwende Palm takke in hulle hande wat in die tipologie ooreenkom met die Joodse kalender van die Millennium. Die Loofhutte fees (Joh.7:2) verwys op die agtergrond na Esegiël 47 wat volgens die Joodse denke vergelyk word met die Dawid Koninkryk, en dit is die rede waarom met Jesus se verheerliking op die berg saam met Moses en Elia, dat Petrus drie Tabernakels wou opgerig het. Petrus het gedink: "Hier is die Messias, laat ons die Koninkryk oprig" Op hierdie Sondag wou die mense iemand gehad het wat die mag van die Romeinse heerskappy sou be?eindig op dieselfde wyse as waarop die Makkabeers die Griekse bewind be?eindig het, en om die Mesiaanse Koninkryk op te rig. Hulle het begin om die Paasfees te vier asof dit die Fees van Tabernakels was. Met Christus se eerste koms het Hy die eerste Drie Feeste (Lente Feeste) in die Joodse kalender vervul: Paasfees; Die Eerste vrugte fees (Wat die opstanding was) en die fees van weke; Pinkster fees. Met Christus se tweede koms sal Hy die laaste drie feeste vervul. (Die herfs of najaars feeste) Die fees van Basuine; Die versoensdag fees en die laaste en finale fees van tabernakels. Die Jode in Christus se tyd wou nie weet van die Lydende Dienskneg Messias wat moes kom as die Paaslam wat geslag moes word nie, hulle wou 'n Koning hê wat in die Duisend jarige vredesryk regeer. Die Lydende Messias, was geken as die "seun van Josef" "HaMashiach Ben Yosef. En die Ere Koning was geken as die seun van Dawid?"HaMashiach Ben Dawid". Vir Jesus van Nasaret, om die Messias te wees, moes Hy ál die profesieë vervul. Maar Jesus het eenvoudig en duidelik nie al hierdie profesieë vervul nie, Hy het net die profesie vervul met betrekking tot die seun van Josef, die Dienskneg. Met ander woorde dit is een Messias met twee verskynings! Eerstens het Hy gekom as die seun van Josef, en as Dienskneg het Hy gely. In die tweede koms sal Hy kom as Christus die seun van Dawid, die Ere Koning wat in die Vredesryk sal regeer.

Valse Leerstellings: Die A/PostMillennium Denke

Hierdie denke was die breinkind van die Roomse Katolieke kerk wat gevolg het op die dwaling van Konstantyn en Augustinus met die tyd toe die Christendom 'n godsdiens van die staat geword het. Hierdie dwaling is totaal onbybels.

Volgens die oorspronklike Joodse sieninge van die Nuwe Testament, is net 'n voor Millennium standpunt aanvaarbaar. As daar nie 'n Millennium is nie, dan is Christus nie die Messias nie!, en as Christus nie die Messias vir die Jode is nie, dan is Hy ook nie die Christus van die kerk nie. Christus moet al die Ou Testamentiese Profesieë vervul.

Die Herstel Van Die Koninkryk

Wat die Apostels eindelik bedoel het by die vraag: "Here, gaan U in hierdie tyd weer die koninkryk van Israel herstel?" Was: "Ons weet dat U die seun van Josef is, maar wanneer gaan U die seun van Dawid wees?" "Wanneer gaan U die Koninkryk herstel soos wat Dawid gedoen het?" Johannes die Doper kon

hierdie dinge ook nie verstaan nie, en stuur toe twee van sy dissipels om vir Christus te vra: "Is U die een wat sou kom, of moet ons 'n ander een verwag?"(Luk.7:19)

En ook het die Apostels, ná die Opstanding, op die Olyfberg met die Hemelvaart, nie verstaan dat daar Een Messias, maar twee verskynings sal wees nie. M.a.w. Christus sal vir 'n tweede keer na ons toe kom!

Jesus Die Seun Van Josef

Israel het Josef sy geliefde seun meer liefgehad as enige van sy ander seuns (Gen.37:3) En daar kom 'n Stem uit die hemele wat sê: "Dit is My geliefde Seun in wie Ek 'n welbehae het" (Matt.3:17) Die Messias, die seun van Josef was die geliefde Seun van Sy Vader.

Gemeenskap En Diens

Toe sê hy (Jakob) vir hom (Josef): "Gaan tog verneem na die welstand van jou broers en berig terug" So het hy hom dan uit die dal van Hebron weggestuur, en hy het by Sigem aangekom. (Gen 37:14) Josef het in Hebron gewoon wat in Hebreeus beteken "Die plek van gemeenskap of broederskap. Josef het saam met sy vader in 'n plek van gemeenskap gewoon en is deur sy vader gestuur om na die welstand van sy broers te verneem. "Want hierdie gesindheid moet in julle wees wat ook in Christus Jesus was. Hy, wat in die gestalte van God was, het dit geen roof geag om aan God gelyk te wees nie, maar het Homself ontledig deur die gestalte van'n dienskneg aan te neem en aan die mense gelyk te word"(Filp.2:5?7)

"Want so lief het God die wêreld gehad, dat Hy Sy eniggebore Seun gegee het, sodat elkeen wat in Hom glo, nie verlore mag gaan nie, maar die ewige lewe kan hê" (Joh.3:16) Jesus het saam met Sy Vader in 'n plek van gemeenskap gewoon en is deur Sy Vader gestuur om na die welstand van Sy broers te verneem.

Josef se broers het gesondig en Josef bring hierdie slegte tyding aan sy vader. (Gen 37:2) Hierdie gurug van Josef aan sy vader veroorsaak dat sy broers hom haat.

"As die wêreld julle haat, moet julle weet dat hy My voor julle gehaat het. As julle van die wêreld was, sou die wêreld sy eiendom liefhê. Maar omdat julle nie van die wêreld is nie, maar Ek julle van die wêreld uitverkies het, daarom haat die wêreld julle"(Joh.15:18?19).

Jesus getuig van die sondes van Sy broers, en hulle het Hom gehaat. En hulle het Hom al hoe meer gehaat.?En Josef het 'n droom gehad en toe hy dit aan sy broers vertel het hulle hom meer gehaat (Gen 37:5) Josef openbaar aan sy broers hoedat hy 'n verhoogde status sal ontvang. Hulle het hom alreeds gehaat omrede hy hulle sondes geopenbaar het, maar nou het hulle hom verag. "En dan sal die teken van die Seun van die mens aan die hemel verskyn, en dan sal die stamme van die aarde rou bedryf en die Seun van die mens sien kom op die wolke van die hemel met groot krag en heerlikheid" (Matt.24:30) "Toe probeer die owerpriesters en skrifgeleerdes in daardie selfde uur om die hande aan Hom te slaan, want hulle het geweet dat Hy hierdie gelykenis met die oog op hulleself uitgespreek het"(Luk.20:19)

Jesus openbaar aan Sy broers die status van glorie wat Hy sal ontvang, en Sy broers het Hom gehaat. Josef wat aan sy broers vertel het dat hy sal regeer, vertel aan sy broers: "Kyk, ons was besig om gerwe te bind op die land toe meteens my gerf gaan staan en ook regop bly staan, terwyl julle gerwe daar

rondom kom en hulle voor my gerf neerbuig" (Gen.37:7) "Van nou af sal u die Seun van die mens sien sit aan die regterhand van die krag van God en kom op die wolke van die hemel" (Matt.26:64) Josef sê dat hy eendag sal regeer, en Jesus vertel dat Hy eendag sal regeer.

Verwerp En Veroordeel

En hulle het hom van veraf gesien. Maar voordat hy naby hulle kom, het hulle listig raad gehou teen hom om hom dood te maak" (Gen.37:18) "??Ons wil nie hê dat hierdie man die koning oor ons moet wees nie"(Luk.19:14)

Die A?Millennium denke leer dat Christus nie op die aarde sal regeer nie.

Die Pre?Millennium denke leer dat Christus se duisend jaar regering sal begin wanneer Hy terugkeer.

Die Post?Millennium denke leer dat Christus se tweede koms eers na die Millennium sal wees. "Maar hulle het aangehou roep en gesê: Kruisig, kruisig Hom!" (Luk.23:21) Josef en Jesus was alby verwerp en veroordeel om te sterf.

"En hulle het vir mekaar gesê: Daar kom daardie dromer aan!" (Gen.37:19) "Toe sy mense dit hoor, gaan hulle uit om Hom in die hande te kry; want hulle het gesê: Hy is buite sy sinne" (Mark.2:21). Josef was deur sy broers beskuldig dat hy 'n dromer is, en hulle sê van Christus, die Messias, die seun van Josef, dat Hy buite sy sinne is.

"Toe sê Juda vir sy broers: Watter voordeel is dit dat ons ons broer doodmaak en sy bloed verberg? Kom, dat ons hom aan die Ismaeliete verkoop, maar laat ons hand nie teen hom wees nie, want hy is ons broer, ons vlees. En sy broers het na hom geluister. En toe die Medianitiese koopmans verby kom, het hulle Josef uit die put uit opgetrek en uitgehaal en Josef aan die Ismaeliete verkoop vir twintig sikkels silwer" (Gen.37:26?28) Juda verraai Josef en verkoop hom vir twintig silwerstukke. "Toe gaan een van die twaalf, met die naam van Judas Iskariot, na die owerpriesters en sê: Wat wil u vir my gee, en ek sal Hom aan u oorlewer? En hulle het vir hom dertig silwerstukke afgeweeg" (Matt.26:14?15)

(Juda en Judas is dieselfde in Hebreeus) Juda verloën Josef vir twintig stukke silwer, en Judas verloën Jesus vir dertig stukke silwer na inflasie.

En so het Josef guns in sy oë gevind en hom gedien; en hy het hom aangestel oor sy huis, en alles wat in sy besit was, aan hom oorgegee" (Gen.39:4) Alles wat Josef gedoen het, het hy gedoen as 'n dienskneg, en alles wat Koning Jesus gedoen het, het Hy gedoen as 'n dienskneg. (Luk.22:25?27/Filp.2:7)

"En vandat hy hom aangestel het oor sy huis en oor alles wat in sy besit was, het die HERE die huis van die Egiptenaar geseën terwille van Josef??"(Gen.39:5) ???"Hy sal die dae verleng, en die welbehae van die HERE sal deur sy hand voorspoedig wees" (Jes.53:10) Die HERE sal alles seën wat die seun van Josef doen.

Versoeking

Ná hierdie dinge het die vrou van sy heer haar oë na Josef opgeslaan en gesê: Kom hou gemeenskap met my. Maar hy het geweier en aan die vrou gesê: Kyk, deur my is dit dat my heer geen kennis neem van

www.Moriel.org

wat in die huis is nie; en alles wat syne is, het hy aan my oorgegee. Hy is in die huis nie groter as ek nie en het my niks onthou nie behalwe u, omdat u sy vrou is; Hoe kan ek dan hierdie groot kwaad doen en sondig teen God?" (Gen.39:7?9) Josef was tot die uiterste toe versoek, maar het vas gestaan en nie gesondig nie. "Toe is Jesus deur die Gees weggelei die woestyn in om versoek te word deur die duiwel???

?Toe sê Jesus vir hom: Gaan weg, Satan! Want daar is geskrywe: Die Here jou God moet jy aanbid en Hom alleen dien" (Matt.4:1?11) Die Messias, die seun van Josef, was versoek tot die uiterste toe, maar Hy het dit weerstaan.

Valse Beskuldigings

"Toe sy dan sien dat hy sy kleed in haar hand laat bly en buitentoe gevlug het, roep sy na huisgenote en sê aan hulle: Kyk, hy het vir ons 'n Hebreeuse man hier gebring om met ons gek te skeer; hy het na my gekom om met my gemeenskap te hê, en ek het hard geskreeu; en toe hy hoor dat ek my stem verhef en skreeu, het hy sy kleed met my laat agterbly en gevlug en na buite geloop" (Gen.39:13?15) Josef was hier valslik beskuldig) "En die owerpriesters en die ouderlinge en die hele Raad het valse getuies teen Jesus gesoek om Hom dood te maak, en niks gevind nie. En alhoewel daar baie valse getuies gekom het, het hulle niks gevind nie. Maar oplaas kom daar twee valse getuies en sê: Hierdie man het gesê: Ek kan die tempel van God afbreek en dit in drie dae opbou. Daarop staan die owerpriester op en sê vir Hom: Antwoord U niks nie? Wat getuig hierdie manne teen U? Maar Jesus het stil gebly. En die hoëpriester antwoord en sê vir Hom: Ek besweer U by die lewende God dat U vir ons sê of U die Christus, die Seun van God is? Jesus antwoord hom: U het dit gesê. Maar Ek sê vir u almal: Van nou af sal u die Seun van die mens sien sit aan die regterhand van die krag van God en kom op die wolke van die hemel. Toe verskeur die hoëpriester sy klere en sê: Hy het godslasterlik gespreek???"(Matt.26:59?65) Die Messias, die seun van Josef, was ook valslik beskuldig.

Lewe En Dood Geprofeteer

"Toe sê Josef vir hom (Die skinker) : Dit is die uitlegging daarvan: die drie ranke is drie dae. Binne drie dae sal Farao jou hoof verhef?jou in jou rang herstel; en jy sal die beker van Farao in sy hand gee net soos vroeër toe jy sy skinker was. Toe antwoord Josef die bakker: Dit is die uitlegging daarvan?die drie mandjies is drie dae. Binne drie dae sal Farao jou hoof bo?oor jou verhef?hy sal jou aan 'n paal ophang en die voëls sal jou vlees van jou afpik" (Gen.40)

Josef profeteer dat een van die kriminele sal lewe en dat een sal sterwe.

"En een van die kwaaddoeners wat opgehang is, het Hom gesmaad en gesê: As U die Christus is, verlos Uself en ons. Maar die ander een antwoord en bestraf hom en sê: Vrees jy ook nie God nie, terwyl jy in dieselfde oordeel is??Ons tog regverdiglik, want ons tog ontvang die verdiende loon vir ons dade, maar Hy het niks verkeerd gedoen nie. En hy sê vir Jesus: Dink aan my, Here, wanneer U in die koninkryk kom. En Jesus antwoord hom: Voorwaar Ek sê vir jou, vandag sal jy saam met My in die Paradys wees" (Luk.23:39?43) Koning Jesus was veroordeel saam met twee kriminele en, soos wat Hy gesê het, het een gelewe en een het gesterwe. Net soos Josef redding belowe het aan die skinker, die veroordeelde man.

Josef was verraai deur sy Joodse broeders in die hande van die Heidene, maar God neem hierdie verraad en draai dit om en maak dit die weg vir Israel en die hele wêreld tot redding, en net so was ons Messias,

die seun van Josef, verraai deur Sy Joodse broers en in die hande van die Heidene oorgegee. En net so het God hierdie gebeure omgedraai en het Christus die Weg tot verlossing geword vir Israel en die hele wêreld.

Vergeet Deur Die Wat Hy Gehelp Het

"En die voorman van die skinkers het nie aan Josef gedink nie, maar hom vergeet"(Gen.40:23) "Toe antwoord Jesus en sê: Het tien nie rein geword nie? En waar is die nege? Was daar niemand onder julle te vinde wat omgedraai het om God te verheerlik behalwe hierdie vreemdeling nie?" (Luk.17:17?18) Josef was vergeet deur die wat hy gehelp het, en die seun van Josef, Koning Jesus was ook vergeet deur die wat Hy gehelp het!

Opgehef Tot Glorie

"Toe laat Farao Josef roep, en hulle het hom gou uit die gevangenis uitgehaal, en hom geskeer en ander klere aangetrek; en hy het by Farao gekom. Toe sê Farao vir Josef: Aangesien God dit alles aan jou bekend gemaak het, is daar niemand verstandig en wys soos jy nie. Jy moet oor my huis wees, en na jou bevel moet my hele volk hulle skik; alleen deur die troon sal ek groter as jy wees" (Gen.41:14,39?40) Josef was uit 'n kerker, 'n plek van dood, uitgehaal en was deur die koning verhef tot 'n posisie van glorie in een dag.

"Gebed vir verligte oë van julle verstand, sodat julle kan weet wat die hoop van sy roeping en wat die rykdom van die heerlikheid van sy erfdeel onder die heiliges is; en wat die uitnemende grootheid van sy krag is vir ons wat glo, na die werking van die krag van sy sterkte wat Hy gewerk het in Christus toe Hy Hom uit die dode opgewek het en Hom laat sit het aan sy regterhand in die hemele bo alle owerheid en mag en krag en heerskappy en elke naam wat genoem word, nie alleen in hierdie wêreld nie, maar ook in die toekomstige" (Eff.1:18?21)

Koning Jesus, die seun van Josef, was verhoog van 'n plek van veroordeling en dood, na 'n plek van heerlikheid in een dag.

Wonderbare Raadsman

"En Farao sê vir Josef: Aangesien God dit alles aan jou bekend gemaak het, is daar niemand verstandig en wys soos jy nie"(Gen.41:39) Josef het getoon dat hy 'n groot raadsman sal wees. In Jes.9:5 lees ons: "Hy word genoem: Wonderbaar, Raadsman" En Farao sê vir Josef: "Kyk, ek stel jou aan oor die hele Egipteland" (Gen.41:41) Josef word met heerlikheid en eer verhoog, en hy ontvang 'n nuwe naam. "Daarom het God Hom ook uitermate verhoog en Hom 'n naam gegee wat bo elke naam is" (Filp.2:9) Koning Jesus is verhoog en verheerlik en ontvang ook 'n nuwe Naam.

Heidense Bruid

"En Farao het Josef genoem Safénat?Panéag en aan hom Asenat, die dogter van Potifera, die priester van On, as vrou gegee. En Josef het uitgetrek oor Egipteland" Gen.41:45) Nadat Josef verhoog is, neem Josef 'n heidense bruid.

"Want die man is die hoof van die vrou, soos Christus ook Hoof is van die gemeente; en Hy is die Verlosser van die liggaam" (Eff.5:23) Koning Jesus, na Sy verheerliking, neem 'n Heidense bruid, die beeld van die Heidense kerk. Dit is hoekom die Boek Rut, die storie van 'n Joodse man en 'n Heidense bruid, op die Pinkster feeste in die Sinagoges gelees word. Wat genoem word: "Die geboorte van die Kerk", en in albei gevalle is die bruide gegee om te deel in die heerlikheid. ONGEVEER DERTIG JAAR OUD.

"En Josef was dertig jaar oud toe hy voor Farao, die koning van Egipte, gestaan het" (Gen.41:46) "En Hy, Jesus, was omtrent dertig jaar oud toe Hy begin leer het" (Luk.3:23) Die seun van Josef was dertig jaar oud toe Hy met Sy werk begin het.

Net Way Hy Vir Julle Se Moet Julle Doen

"En toe die hele Egipteland honger gely en die volk na Farao geroep het om brood, sê Farao aan al die Egiptenaars: Gaan na Josef, doen wat hy julle sê" (Gen.41:55) "Sy (Jesus se) moeder sê vir die dienaars: Net wat Hy vir julle sê, moet julle doen"(Joh.2:5)

Elke Knie Sal Buig

"Toe trek Farao sy seëlring van sy hand af en sit dit aan die hand van Josef; en hy het hom fyn linneklere laat aantrek en 'n goue ketting om sy hals gehang en hom laar ry op sy tweede rytuig; en hulle het voor hom uitgeroep: Pasop! So het hy hom dan oor die hele Egipteland aangestel. En Farao sê vir Josef: Ek is Farao, maar sonder jou mag niemand sy hand of voet in die hele Egipteland verroer nie" (Gen.41:42?44) Toe Josef verhoog is het elke knie voor hom gebuig en het hy al die eer en heerlikheid ontvang.

"Daarom het God hom ook uitermate verhoog en Hom 'n Naam gegee wat bo elke naam is, sodat in die Naam van Jesus elke knie sou buig van die wat in die hemel en die wat op die aarde en die wat onder die aarde is, en elke tong sou bely dat Jesus Christus die Here is tot Heerlikheid van God die Vader" (Filp.2:9?

11) "En Jesus het nader gekom en met hulle gespreek en gesê: Aan My is gegee alle mag in die hemel en op die aarde" (Matt.28:18)

Die Brood Van Die Lewe

" En toe die hele Egipte land honger gely en die volk na Farao geroep het om brood, sê Farao aan al die Egiptenaars: Gaan na Josef, doen wat hy aan julle sê. En die hongersnood was oor die hele oppervlakte van die aarde, en Josef het alles waarin iets was, oopgemaak en aan die Egiptenaars verkoop, en die hongersnood was swaar in Egipteland" (Gen. 41:55?57)

"En Jesus sê vir hulle: Ek is die brood van die lewe; wie na My toe kom, sal nooit honger kry nie: en wie in My glo, sal nooit dors kry nie." Joh.6:35) En die saligheid is in niemand anders nie, want daar is ook geen ander naam onder die hemel wat onder die mense gegee is, waardeur ons gered moet word nie. (Hand.4:12) Die hele wêreld moes hulle brood van Josef ontvang?en daar was geen ander manier waardeur die mense gered kon word nie!, en daar is ook geen ander manier waardeur ons gered kan word nie behalwe deur die Seun van Josef.

Christus Het Homself Aan Geen Mens Toevertrou Nie

"En hulle het gaan sit volgens sy bepalings, die eersgeborene na sy eersgeboorte en die jongste na sy jonkheid. Toe kyk die manne hom verbaas aan. Hoekom? Omdat Josef sy broers se sondige verlede geken het. "Maar Jesus self het Hom aan hulle nie toevertrou nie, omdat Hy almal geken het en omdat Hy nie nodig gehad het dat iemand van die mens sou getuig nie; want Hy self het geweet wat in die mens is"(Joh.2:24?25) Jesus die Messias is net soos Josef, hy het die lewens geskiedenis van sy broers geken.

Soos wat ons gelees het in Genesis, herken Josef se broers hom nie by die eerste koms nie.

Hulle Herken Hom Die Tweede Keer

Josef kon homself nie beheer voor al die mense wat by hom gestaan het nie, en hy roep uit en stuur hulle weg. Hy was so hartseer dat die Egiptenare en die bediendes van Foarao hom hoor huil het, toe sê Josef vir sy broers: "Ek is Josef! Lewe my vader nog!" Maar sy broers kon hom nie antwoord nie want hulle was totaal verskrik in sy teenwoordigheid. Toe sê Josef vir sy broers: "Kom tog nader na my, en toe hulle nader kom sê hy: Ek is julle broer Josef vir wie julle na Egipte verkoop het." (Gen.45:1?4) Josef se broers het hom nie by die eerste koms herken nie, maar by die tweede koms. "Maar oor die huis van Dawid en oor die inwoners van Jerusalem sal Ek uitgiet die Gees van genade en smekinge; en hulle sal opsien na My vir wie hulle deurboor het, en hulle sal oor Hom rouklaag soos 'n mens rouklaag oor 'n enigste seun en bitterlik oor Hom ween soos 'n mens bitterlik ween oor 'n eersgebore kind" (Sag.12:10)

Die broers van die Messias, die seun van Josef, het Hom nie by Sy eerste koms herken nie, maar hulle sal by Koning Jesus se tweede koms tot die besef kom dat hulle die Een teen wie hulle al die onreg gepleeg het, Hy die Een gaan wees wat tot hulle redding sal kom. Die Een wat gekruisig was, is die Een wat die Verlosser is, die Koning van die konings. Die seun van Josef is ook die seun van Dawid. Die Lydende Dienskneg is ook die Koning wat gaan heers.

Toe Josef se broers hulle sonde voor hom bely het hy hulle vergewe, en wanneer Jesus se broers, die Joodse volk belydenis doen, sal Hy hulle vergewe. In die begin het Josef die mense van Egipte, die Heidene, gebruik om brood vir sy broers te gee, maar 'n tyd het gekom toe die Heidene wegestuur was en hy hom aan sy broers bekend gemaak het. Op die huidige oomblik gebruik die seun van Josef die Heidene, die Christene, om brood aan Sy broers te stuur, die Brood van die Lewe, maar daar gaan 'n tyd kom in die groot verdrukking wanneer die seun van Josef Homself Persoonlik, aan Sy broers gaan openbaar

Al Die Mag En Gesag Aan Die Koning

Ons lees dat Josef met al die mag wat hy ontvang het alles oorgegee het in die hande van Farao. (Gen.47:20) "Daarna kom die einde, wanneer Hy die koninkryk aan God die Vader oorgee, as Hy alle heerskappy en alle gesag en mag vernietig het" (1Kor.15:24)

Die Redder

"En hulle antwoord: U het ons lewe gered. Laat ons guns mag vind in die oë van my heer, dan sal ons die dienaars van Farao wees" Gen.47:25) Josef was geken as die redder van die mense.

"Want die reddende genade van God het aan alle mense verskyn en leer ons om die goddeloosheid en die wêreldse begeerlikhede te verloën, ingetoë en regverdig en vroom in die teenwoordige wêreld te lewe, terwyl ons die salige hoop en die verskyning van die heerlikheid verwag van die grote God en ons Verlosser, Christus Jesus, wat Homself vir ons gegee het om ons te verlos van alle ongeregtigheid en vir Homself 'n volk as 'n eiendom te reinig, ywerig in goeie werke" (Titus 1:11?14) Die Messias, die seun van Josef, die Here Jesus Christus, word verheerlik en herken as die Redder van die hele mensdom.

Nie Geherken Nie

Toe Josef vereer was met al die linne klere en juwele van Farao (Gen.41:42) het hy totaal onherkenbaar geword vir sy Hebreeuse broers (Gen.42:8)

Een Messias: Twee Verskynings

Josef ontvang 'n nuwe naam by sy verhoging. (Gen.41:45) Die Heidene gee vir Rabbi Ben Yosef 'n nuwe Naam???Jesus???"n Griekse" Naam, nie Christus se oorspronklike Naam nie.

Diegene wat op Koning Jesus vertrou, Hom wie ons almal deurboor het, en nou ween oor die Enigste Seun, die Seun van God, sal dieselfde seëninge ontvang soos wat Christus se eie broers sal ontvang. Die Messias, die Seun van God (Die seun van Josef) sal terugkeer as die Messias, die seun van Dawid, en Hy sal die koninkryk van Israel herstel.

Amen, Amen. †††

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How AI is transforming defensive capabilities against drones

October 12, 2026

Written by - Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Examples abound in history of how the responses to innovations in technology that disrupted and transformed the nature of warfare have taken a delayed time to be adapted. Chain mail and armour had to be altered and bolstered to repel arrows from the English Longbow in Medieval Europe, but this didn't occur in time to the dismay of the French at Agincourt. It took the Spanish decades to redesign their cumbersome Galleons that lay prey to the swifter English ships. Napoleonic era field tactics were still being employed during the American Civil War, with mass charges mowed down by the Gatling barrel machine gun. Trench warfare was only later embraced during WWI. With the cheap manufacture of drones and the advances in AI a new chapter has opened in how war is waged in our own time. The conflicts in Ukraine and Iran have demonstrated how asymmetric warfare has become as much an economic calculation as a game of cat and mouse. Drones (and relatively cheaply manufactured ballistic missiles by Iran) are being shot down at great expense. AI which has been extensively deployed for target identification in Gaza is also proving to be a vital tool in hunting incoming drones. But as in the delayed development of military countermeasures historically, drones are ahead of AI in the battlefield. This is reflected in the enormity of Russian military casualties that have fallen victim to Ukrainian drones. AI is able to cut through the 'background noise' of distracting projectiles, birds and other debris to home in efforts to eliminate the actual drone target. The magic formula is speed and precision. Humans can detect and assess a threat, but AI can process radar, cameras and other sensors almost instantly, and with increasing accuracy predict where a drone intends to strike. When swamped with a wave drone attack, AI acts to identify and track the multiple threats. AI can also help decide how to respond. Depending on the system, the response could involve electronic warfare, an interceptor drone, a missile or a gun-based system. Ukraine has installed automated machine gun turrets instructed by AI to protect Kiev. In some cases, humans still make the final decision to engage, while AI handles the calculations and tracking required to make that decision quickly. More broadly, drone warfare is becoming a contest between autonomous systems. The challenge is no longer simply building a better missile or a better drone. It is building a system that can see the threat first, understand it quickly and respond before the drone reaches its target. In that sense, AI is becoming a critical part of air defence. The advantage may increasingly belong to whoever can make the fastest and most accurate decisions—not necessarily whoever manufactures the most expensive weapons. AI's pace of progress is exponential. It is beyond comprehension what capacity could be realized in even the next 2-3 years. The combination of drones, robotics and AI may render the traditional military hardware of tanks, frigates and fighter jets almost functionally obsolete. The development of AI's course of military application will be largely directed by the conflicts where it is deployed. In the pre-AI world of 1987, the black Friday market crash during the Reagan Administration saw a dangerous drop in the Dow, where computer analysis issued sell orders against a background of Reagan's massive budget deficits. Amidst Reagan's budget deficits this created an environment where social security was looted to fund defence spending. A supposed conservative President ran a fiscal policy with simultaneous increases in the Pentagon budget, coupled with tax cuts. The computer generated sell off was beyond the functional control of brokers and market makers, while the Soviets attempted to engineer market irregularities affecting the American economy which had further global ramifications due to massive American trade deficits with Japan under Reagan. The current Securities exchange environment is at best no less complex now. Given the spectre of what transpired in 1987 with computerised over control of stock exchange trading, and a shadow hanging over the bond market we are left to ponder could another such scenario be triggered in the age of AI? And even more illuminous prospect over shadows us now with the question can AI gain a decision-making operational capacity over command-and-control decisions. Certainly, for tactical weapons systems or even a doomsday scenario with Russia, China, India or Pakistan placing nuclear launch control in the hands of AI that could result in an exchange that either the US, Britain, France or Israel would be forced to react to. Without scaremongering it is necessary for strategic planners to prevent the nuclear powers that be from arriving at the precipice of such an abyss.

Interconnected Conflicts: The Risk of a New Thirty Years' War. By Rubin Rothler - LLB, MLB

September 21, 2026

The interlinked nature of third-party involvement in the ongoing conflicts in Iran and Ukraine has increasingly come to the fore in recent weeks. It emerged that China has not only been providing Iran with radar systems, navigation tools, and electronic warfare technology, but also high-resolution satellite imagery and geospatial data to direct its rockets. The same great-power relationships that are shaping the Middle East are affecting the conduct and constraints of the war in Ukraine. It is apparent that a reciprocation in kind is dictating Russia's conduct towards the US in Iran. Intelligence and targeting support mirror similar U.S. assistance to Ukraine. But this picture becomes murkier when considering the backroom accommodations Trump is willing to give Putin. Recently, Trump pressured Zelensky to stop targeting Russian diesel infrastructure, saying the attacks were causing a shortage of the fuel that is "hurting the world." The U.S. national average price for diesel, which is used by trucks, trains, ships, and farm equipment, rose above six dollars a gallon for the first time last Thursday. Such interventions demonstrate how developments on the battlefield in Ukraine can no longer be considered independently of wider economic and geopolitical calculations. China has been using tankers that are already at sea, when that runs out the American blockade will create shortage problems for the Chinese economy, as China no longer gets Venezuelan oil and is reliant on Iran and international spot market prices. The war with Iran is now spreading to Yemen, with the Houthis attempting to replicate the Iranian chokehold model perfected in the Strait of Hormuz. The strategic importance of controlling or threatening critical maritime chokepoints is central to the wider contest. What happens in the Gulf can therefore have consequences for shipping, energy markets, and military calculations far beyond the immediate theatre. So far, the US has declined Saudi requests to slow the Houthi advance. Neither Turkey nor Egypt seems inclined to come to Saudi Arabia's aid. This is despite the signing of a very recent mutual defence pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan. More developments can happen in these conflicts on an average day than can be afforded mention, but they should be increasingly understood as interconnected parts of a wider geopolitical confrontation. Assistance in one theatre triggers reciprocal action in another. Consequently, these cease to be discrete, containable conflicts and are extending into prolonged multinational conflicts. There is a distinct possibility that these may become frozen conflicts over time. A more terrifying eventuality is something more akin to the Thirty Years' War, which was fought in the first half of the 17th century in Europe. It is important to remember that this calamity, which ravaged Europe, began as a localized rebellion that gradually drew in more and more powers. The initial religious nature of the fighting gave way to political struggles. The mechanism by which a localized conflict becomes a multinational struggle offers a historical warning worth considering. The danger today is that a collection of individually distinct conflicts could become sufficiently interconnected that containing any one of them becomes increasingly difficult. Iran, Ukraine, Russia, China, the United States, and the conflict involving the Houthis are already linked by military assistance, intelligence, energy, trade, and strategic competition. The question, therefore, is no longer simply how any one of these conflicts ends. It is whether they can remain separate conflicts at all. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Prayer Request

By David Passmore • September 12, 2026

Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for our sister in Jesus - Wendy Blomkamp, widow of Brother Fred Blomkamp (now with The Lord), the founder of Moriel South Africa Branch (not to be confused with Moriel's Ebyown Aids Children's Mission in South Africa founded by David Royle). Wendy, (an equestrian rider of all things) is originally from West Yorkshire, England but has lived most of her life in South Africa and is currently in retirement in the USA. Unfortunately, Wendy is diagnosed with inoperable pre terminal cancer with cardio pullmonary complications. The Lord will either intervene supernaturally or call her home. We request prayer for Wendy and her beloved family and wisdom for her physicians. In Christ, All at Moriel

What would happen to Israel if the House is controlled by Democrats, and if the Republicans lose control of the Senate?

By David Passmore • September 7, 2026

The US midterm elections are around the corner and the results could have profound effects on US foreign policy concerning Israel. Much has been said about this vote being a referendum on Trump's unpopular war with Iran. But it can equally be said to be about Trump's other foreign policy engagements that are viewed rather more favourably like the overthrow of Maduro in Venezuela and his replacement with a pro-American regime. With Israel the picture is less clear. It used to be a given that Israel enjoyed bipartisan support on the Hill. You could count on the fingers of one hand the number of politicians opposed to supporting Israel - the occasional fringe Democrat representing a singular Michigan constituency with a high Arab origin demographic, or a rare odd ball Republican preaching strict isolationism. This dynamic has shifted quickly in the last decade. The Democrats have all but abandoned any inclination of a pro-Israel position. Even establishment figures like Chuck Schumer have been pressured to side with the Party's radical left wing. With 60-80% of Democrats now anti-Israel, Israel can no longer rely on Jewish Democrats to oppose anti-Zionism or antisemitism. The most outspoken Democratic member of the Senate advocating a pro-Israel position, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania is being pressured to resign and leave the party even by Pennsylvania's Jewish Governor Shapiro and Soros sponsored Philadelphia Prosecutor Krasner. This is happening concurrently with mass endorsement from 170 leading Hollywood Jewish actors writing a letter of support for Mark Ruffallo - despite his antisemitic comments naming Jewish investors supporting a Hollywood studio mega merger as being associated with apartheid genocide. However most shocking, were the comments by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel who stood before an audience of Jewish Democrats last weekend telling them they may need to sacrifice the safety, and even the future, of their own people in exchange for saving the rest of humanity. Such rhetoric is contrary to basic human instincts of survival and self-preservation. If any other nation were suggested this course of action, I wonder what their response would be? On the Republican side the foreboding sense of an altering course towards Israel no longer seems so distant. The anti-Israel faction in the Republican party led by Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens and Nick Fuentes are now being supported by Vice President Vance. Jewish kingpins in the Trump Administration such as Witkoff and Kushner have been tied to business dealings in N.Y. with the Muslim Brotherhood controlled Qatari government through its business holdings. Should Republicans lose control of the Senate while Democrats take the House, Israel could find itself having to drastically re-access its relationship with Washington. We wouldn't see an immediate break in ties. American military, intelligence, technological and strategic cooperation with Israel is too integrated into the core of US institutions and corporations that would take a protracted period to dismantle. However, the power of Congress is in no way feeble. Congress controls funding, foreign-assistance legislation, sanctions, arms-related legislation and, perhaps most importantly, the political milieu in which an administration operates. A Democratic House combined with a Senate no longer controlled by Republicans could place enormous pressure on Trump to alter his attitude towards Israel. Practically this could entail demanding further accountability from Israel over military operations in Gaza, and the West Bank Settlers causing civilian casualties and property damage. Military aid could face more conditions or restrictions, but an immediate cutoff is unlikely. Israel has historically depended upon the presumption that regardless of who was President, there would be a robust enough bipartisan coalition in Congress to prevent a major deterioration in the relationship. Now the opposite appears true. Israel is taking the gamble of solely relying on a friendly President like Trump getting elected to maintain cordial relations. With the erosion of even much of Jewish American support for Israel and the hijacking of the Democratic party by a pro Islamist socialist left seen in Mamdani and others, Israel is forced to confront the inescapable reality that the last strong bastion of support for it is the Republican Party's evangelical base. But even younger voters in this key demographic are beginning to question support for Israel. The hostility displayed by the Haredim in Jerusalem and elsewhere against Christians including evangelicals, is to say the least counter-productive to the national interest. To attack the one friend Israel has left with a proven track record of loyalty and is vital to pro-Zionism internationally, is particularly detrimental to the national interest. It is Iran with its Mahdiist interpretations of jihad and sharia as a religious ideology that drives its hatred of Israel and the USA, and The West, to the detriment of the interests of the majority of the Iranian populace who want non hostile co-existence. Such religious fanaticism and ideologically fuelled hatred ought not be given place in Israeli Judaism. It too, will generate adverse consequences for the majority of Israelis, including religious moderates, who desire an ongoing friendship with Evangelical Christians whose theology is not one of anti Semitism, but of proven Philo-Semitism and pro Zionism.

Don't bit ethe hand that feeds you - Irish hypocrisy towards Israel

By David Passmore • August 21, 2026

Don't bite the hand that feeds you - Irish hypocrisy towards Israel Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Amongst European nations, Ireland in recent years has gained the reputation as being the leading anti-Zionist country. The Irish Republic has never been favourably inclined to Israel. It only established an Embassy in Tel Aviv in 1996. In poll after poll the vast majority of the Irish public have indicated hostility towards Zionism and strong support for Palestinian Statehood. The curious aberration to this is that in British Ruled Northern Ireland support is demarcated along sectarian lines. Catholic Republican areas predictably tend to ardently support the Palestinian cause, while Protestant Unionist communities are overwhelmingly pro-Israel. Perhaps some credence can be given to sentiments of traditional Catholic antisemitism hardwired into the Irish psyche as contributing towards this disposition. It was certainly odd that the Irish government promptly sent a delegation to the Nazi German Ambassador in Dublin to convey condolences after news of Hitler's suicide broke at the end of WW2. But more concretely if you were to ask the average Irish protester on a pro-Palestine march the basis of their empathy for the Palestinian cause, they would point to the ostensible parallels between the Irish experience of fighting for independence from British colonial oppression to the plight of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Further remonstrations on a diplomatic level concern the actions of the IDF interreacting with Irish Peace Keepers in Southern Lebanon that have caused the deaths of several Irish Peace Keepers over the decades in friendly fire incidents. Ireland has contributed the most peace keepers to this mission per capita and the government has condemned Israel for these deaths that they view as avoidable. This animosity towards Israel is unbalanced. There are reasons to consider that Ireland and Israel have a shared experience of national liberation. Both countries fought the British in the pursuit of independence. Both countries made great efforts to resurrect their ancient languages for modern wide scale use. Both the Irish and Jews form major diaspora communities in New York. Despite all this Ireland ranks as Israel's second largest export market after the US. The preponderance of Israeli exports to Ireland comprises electronic integrated circuits, micro-assemblies, and tech manufacturing components. American multinational colossal tech corporations like Intel are substantially engrossed in this trade through the chain of supply. Ireland and Israel are hubs for design and manufacture of high-tech hardware components for US corporations. So, due to the nature of the most prosperous and competitive sectors of their respective economies, Israel and Ireland are inextricably bound in bilateral trade ties. Resolutions from the Irish government to impose sanctions on West Bank originating produce is merely perfunctory rhetoric. Such actions amount to a drop in the bucket in terms of impact to overall trade. The stark reliance of Ireland on advanced Israeli aviation equipment recently caused a spectacle when Ireland's new government jet struggled to land in heavy fog due to it being ordered without an advanced Israeli made navigation system. This was directly due to a short-sighted government decision not to buy Israeli military technology. There is a marked disparity between the official position of the Irish government designed for domestic public consumption and the economic policies that it actually pursues towards Israel. The government is acutely aware that the US is massively invested in the Irish economy and they don't want to do anything to jeopardise this. Washington demands that their enterprises in Dublin are intertwined with operations in Israel. The Irish government dare not even prevent US military supply flights refuelling at Shannon Airport on their way to Tel Aviv. The Irish government knows that times change and now the gripping social issue is the anti-immigrant/anti-Islam popular street protests. Soon the anti-Israel protests could become a mere side show only really promoted by Sinn Fein given the pressing ramifications of mass migration. So, in the meantime certain politicians will rile against the occupation, purported genocide and pass paltry sanctions against insignificant produce from the West Bank. All the while making hand over fist in money with the Israelis where it really matters in tech. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

The tide has Changed

By David Passmore • July 31, 2026

The Tide Has Changed Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The America that Netanyahu touched down on is a changed America. The death of Lindsey Graham represents a changing of the guard. Graham was a staunch Israeli ally who will most probably become an increasingly rare breed in Washington. Sixty percent of Americans now hold a unfavourable view of Israel which politicians are finding difficult to ignore. It was once unthinkable to believe that New York City with such a strong Jewish electoral base and influence on all sectors of economic and cultural life would have a mayor that is so hostile to Israel to such an extent that he is calling for the arrest of its Prime Minister. From all accounts Netanyahu was cordially welcomed at the White House. The official press release stated that the talks were constructive. What is more telling is what was left unsaid particularly concerning the proposed sale of F35's to Israel's new regional adversary -Turkey. Trump is keen to find a swift resolution to the Iran War, while Netanyahu is opposed to a premature departure. When the US and Israel initiated their attacks on Iran over five months ago, Trump and Netanyahu appeared united in the War's goals and purpose. But as the protracted conflict has staggered to topple the Iranian regime fractures have emerged. Much has been said about the imminent political realities both leaders face. The Republicans could take a big hit in the November midterm elections should the war continue and global energy markets be negatively impacted. Netanyahu is anxious to demonstrate a big win to the Israeli public with the upcoming October election. In Israel, the Iran War is not viewed in isolation, but rather as an extension of the response to the colossal disaster of the October 7th massacre. Netanyahu must rehabilitate his reputation as a competent steward of national security having had the greatest loss of civilian life in an attack happening under his watch. Aside from the Iran issue, Trump is being pressured by Erdogan to insist upon Israeli withdrawal from Syrian territory pre-emptively seized by Israel following the toppling of Assad. Trump has also indicated disapproval of the extent of continuing Israeli measures against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, questioning the proportionality employed. Netanyahu is not in an envious position. Throughout his tenure and political career, he lauded his ability to engage successfully with the American public by zealously advocating Israel's position. Yet under his government Israel's reputation has plummeted in the US. Trump may be the last US President to extend such overwhelming bilateral support to Israel. The days of politicians like Lindsey Graham are fast ending. While John Fetteman and Marco Rubio appear to be remaining more solid, even some of the most warmly inclined leading Republican and Democrat voices like Donald Trump and Rahm Emanuel have nuanced their support for Israel. The tide has shifted and will at best level off if not continuing to shift further. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

The Saudi Nuclear Deal: An attempt to alter the Regional Balance of Power

By David Passmore • July 24, 2026

The Saudi Nuclear Deal: An attempt to alter the Regional Balance of Power Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The initiative to develop a civilian nuclear program in Saudi Arabia with US assistance isn't new. There were concrete plans discussed towards these ends during the first Trump Administration. The recent announcement to actualize this deal follows the geo-political regional tumult in the wake of the Iran War. Several dimensions of motivation underlie the US decision. An overarching US strategic agenda is to keep the Saudis firmly in the American sphere of influence. Washington knows all too well that the Chinese and Russians are eager to offer their nuclear technical assistance to the Saudis in order to draw them closer to their camp. On a personal note, the nuclear agreement is a significant achievement for Bin Salaman. The Saudis have long had designs to diversify their energy supplies. Having a civilian nuclear program also adds prestige to Saudi Arabia as an emerging market economy. For the US, a monopoly on contracting companies for the requisite construction offers lucrative economic opportunities. Although the Civilian Nuclear deal does not allow the enrichment of Uranium, the Saudis will be in a position to do so if Washington gives the green light. This will act as a counterbalanced threat hanging over the Iranians. After the recent flare up of renewed fighting with Iran due to their lack of adherence to the moratorium of understanding, something had to budge in Trump's estimation. A reconfiguration of the power balance in the Gulf by introducing the potential of Saudi Arabia to be able to acquire nuclear weapons shifts the dynamic and places further pressure on Iran to strictly abstain from nuclear proliferation. Despite Israeli concerns about the agreement, Trump sought to assuage their alarm by making it contingent upon Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with them. Given the inherently unstable nature of an autocratic Saudi regime Israel views a diplomatic relationship with the Saudis as being on precarious footing in the long term. Israel is already forced to contend with the implications of one nuclear armed Muslim state - Pakistan and it will further weaken its own deterrent capability if another similarly capable hostile neighbour were to emerge in the future. The roles of Turkey and Qatar in all this foray are a wild card. Officially Turkey is served under the NATO nuclear umbrella for defence that is subject to US control. However, its civilian nuclear program remains in its infancy. Now with the Saudi deal, Erdogan may be inclined to exert pressure on the US to help accelerate his own nuclear program. Just as Erdogan's efforts to acquire F35 fighter jets from the US greatly disturbed Israeli military planners, a heightened Turkish nuclear ability will intensify this fear. Qatar views itself as pursuing its own independent foreign policy that has managed to remain rather neutral during the current war, thereby escaping the ire of Iran's strikes on US regional assets. Overall, the Qatari government has grown closer to the Turkish vision for the region and so likely isn't particularly amiable to the Saudi agreement. Ultimately the Saudi deal is a gamble. Many will see it as throwing more fuel on the fire which will further imperil the tinder box region and heighten tensions. But Trump finds himself at a continuing impasse with a stubborn regime in Tehran that is leveraging their geographic hold on the straits of Hormuz to inflict damage on the global energy markets. Iranian strikes upon US Arab regional allies have underscored the de facto alliance between Israel and the Arabs against Iran and its Shia proxies. The US hopes to use the Saudi nuclear deal as a means of making this alliance official by having Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords as a pre-condition. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Circling the Wagons

By David Passmore • July 14, 2026

Circling the wagons Ruben Rothler LLB, LLM Israel is a society riddled with tension and division. It is sociologically, if not politically miraculous that a country drawing Jews from all over the world is able to exist at all. The army affords a degree of integration as a melting pot. But this is only a marginal source of national unity in the overall scheme of things. More so are the myriads of external threats that face this small country. In the former generation the Ashkenazi (Jews of European descent) - Sephardic (Jews of Oriental descent) divide was far more pronounced. The dominant Ashkenazi establishment held the reins of political and economic power which was resented by the Sephardim. However, due to a combination of inter-marriage and political accommodation much of the chasm that separated these distinct groups was forged. Menachem Begin (an Ashkenazi politician) in 1970 successfully ran on the Likud Party ticket with a campaign that brought Sephardic Jews under his conservative political umbrella. Later the immigration of Russian Jews following the end of Communism would add a whole new dimension to the Israeli demographic milieu. The younger generation of these immigrants tended to adapt well to Israeli society and contributed much to the economy. The wider division in Israeli society that crosses ethnic lines concerns that between religious and secular Jews. This can be further bifurcated to the clash between the secular and specifically ultra-orthodox Jews (Haredim) as distinguished from the national religious Jews (Dati Leumi). The Secular and the Religious generally part on what they envisage a Jewish State to entail. Religious Jews desire the State to strictly adhere to the stipulations of Jewish Law (Halacha), while at present Halakhic influence is largely limited to certain areas of Family Law concerning Jewish citizens. Wider considerations of promoting a socially conservative political agenda would also be forefront amongst the religious mindset broadly. Secular Jews view the imposition of such proposed measures as a serious infringement of their civil rights. With regard to the Haredim, the bone of contention looms larger, in that this group is fundamentally opposed to participating in society at large. This is acutely manifested in diminished contribution to the work force and a refusal to be conscripted into the army. The 2023 judicial reform protests posed a significant threat to social civil order. The nation appeared to be bitterly divided into two opposing camps. This split reflected broader divisions concerning visions of how the country should be governed. The judicial reforms would have weakened the Supreme Court's ability to render the Executive branch accountable. However, the Supreme Court was also accused of using its considerable powers to promote a socially liberal agenda. Left wing secular Israelis tended to oppose the proposed reforms while those on the right (which included the majority of Religious Jews) supported the reforms. Every weekend droves of protesters were brought onto the streets causing major disturbances to traffic. The polarising nature of this impasse threatened the future of Israeli democracy. It was the October 7th attack that brought a swift end to this public debate and civil strife. The nation instinctually united in response to this common existential threat. The judicial reforms were shelved for a future point when the urgent security threats subsided. However, as the war dragged on the enduring issue of Haredi refusal to conscript into the army became more pronounced. Mounting casualties combined with ever increasing manpower demands to field troops on the multiple theatres of action on which the IDF is engaged has depleted the ranks, and the army is now in much need of fresh conscripts. Haredi belligerent refusal to participate in the pressing national defence has escalated from being a political debate to a matter of very practical vital importance. Overall we can observe that the challenges to national unity in successive generations since the establishment of Israel has recurrently been ameliorated by the common necessity of defence towards outside threats. Most recently we can see this happening with regard to the global anti Semitism and anti-Zionism that has been raging since the October 7th atrocities. These hostile attitudes have paradoxically acted as a force which promotes nationalism and a sense of national cohesion in Israel that otherwise might not functionally exist. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

A Divided Nation

By David Passmore • July 8, 2026

A Divided Nation Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The Haredi community has had a complicated, paradoxical relationship with the State since its founding. Rooted in a Talmudic precept that the Jews are forbidden to resettle the land of Israel en masse by force before the coming of the Messiah, the secular democratic State of Israel presents itself as blasphemous by its mere existence. Yet due to practical considerations such as the need to obtain funding for its religious academies the Haredi leadership reached a settlement with the State's founders that exempted Haredi men from being conscripted for military service. This was at a time when the Haredi population in Israel was relatively small. Over the past decades this demographic ballooned until the point that soon the majority of Jewish children in Israel will be born into Haredi families. Such a situation is clearly unsustainable. Recently the Knesset's (Parliament's) Haredi parties have pressured their coalition partners in government to codify Torah Study as part of the Country's Basic Laws. This was purposefully done to elevate the status of their institutions to be on parity with service in the IDF. Israel is yet to promulgate a written Constitution, so legislation classed as a Basic Law holds Constitutional status for all intents and purposes. These moves by the religious parties represent a back door power grab to enshrine in law very significant hurdles to prevent the enlistment of Haredi men. The burden of Israel's defence is comparatively massive for a country its size and it is vastly disproportionately shouldered by the secular population. Until now there have been political initiatives to conscript the Haredim. But given the huge manpower shortages emerging in the wake of near continual conflict on multiple fronts since the events of October 7th this matter has become urgent and not merely a theoretical discussion of what is fair and equitable. It is important to draw a distinction between the Haredim and national religious Jews (Dati Leumi). The Haredim adhere to a lifestyle entirely committed to observance of Jewish Law and Talmudic study. This is embraced to the exclusion of gainful employment and participation in wider society. They are either outrightly opposed to Zionism or consider themselves non-Zionist. Conversely, followers of the national religious movement in Israel although being observant of Jewish law and learning would alongside this pursue secular professions. Furthermore, they are ardently Zionist and disproportionately serve in IDF combat units. This is often done within the framework of a program called Hesder Yeshiva that combines religious learning with military service. Efforts to cater a similar model for accommodating Haredi participation in the IDF have so far failed to make substantial gains. Such measures designed to override Haredi objections to service based upon modesty concerns by strict segregation of the sexes in these specially formed units have failed to appease the Haredi leadership. For them, any form of military service is considered a dereliction of their duty to fully devote themselves to a Torah lifestyle. They argue that their Talmudic learning and prayers are in itself a form of national service and act to protect the Jewish people spiritually from enemy attack. It is as if two parallel societies exist within Israel. And the trajectory of separation between the two is only growing. The Haredim are cloistered away in their Yeshivas, immersed in lives devoted to adhering to the stipulations of Jewish law. While the particulars of actually running the State is left to the Secular. The Haredim desire all the benefits of subsidizing their lifestyle without contributing to society. What we really have going on here at source is two profoundly different and opposing ideological visions of what is important in life and what is the purpose of a Jewish State. At the State's founding these divergent perspectives were more manageable. Ben Gurion only had to contend with one religious party –the National Religious Party. Later in 1970 Begin aligned with the NRP to form a coalition government that also brought Sephardic Jews under the Likud umbrella which had the effect of bringing unity to the country by bridging the Ashkenazi-Sephardi divide. However, over time Israeli politics has seen a proliferation of religious parties, gaining further leverage as king brokers in forming governments due to the proportionate representation voting system which secular Israelis not uncommonly view as political blackmail. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Why Is It Always Israel? | Zechariah 12 Is Happening Before Our Eyes

By David Passmore • June 29, 2026