Pedion Ha Ben

April 3, 2025
The Donkey, the Lamb & the Human

“You shall redeem with a lamb the first offspring from a donkey; and if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck. You shall redeem all the firstborn of your sons. None shall appear before Me empty-handed. (Exodus 34:20)

 

This is something in Judaism called the “pedion ha ben”—the consecration, or the redemption, of the firstborn. We know from the messianic typology it is a figure of Christ the firstborn, the only begotten of the Father. (Jn. 1:14) The firstborn was redeemed for silver, (Num. 18:16) a price of redemption which is a picture of Jesus. Here we have the donkey, we have the lamb and we have the firstborn of the sons, all in the same verse.

“But every first offspring of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck; and every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. (Exodus 13:13)

Once more we have the lamb, we have the donkey and we have the human, all three. It is strange because it puts something that is ritual and juridical right in the middle of a narrative, the story of Pharaoh. But why does it put a donkey in the same passage in which it talks about a human? If a donkey is not redeemed by a lamb, its neck must be broken.

We know what the firstborn son is—it is a type of Christ, we know what a human is—that is us, and we know what the lamb is a picture of—a figure of the Lord Jesus. “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (Jn. 1:29) And we know that Exodus 13 is paschal because it is talking about Passover, so obviously it is talking about Him as the lamb. There is no problem identifying the human, no problem identifying the lamb, that leaves the donkey. Why must a donkey be redeemed by a lamb?

The Nature of a Donkey


A donkey is not too clever. Unlike its equestrian cousin the horse, it is not a brave animal; a donkey is fearful. So it is not too smart and it is not too brave. Among other things, zoologically, it is promiscuous. It will breed across the genus barrier and mate with something other than another one of its own. Sexually it will mate with anything. Hence in the Hebrew Prophets, in castigating Israel for its sin of carrying its idolatry to harlotry, compare Israel to a wild donkey. (Jer. 2:24; Hos. 8:9)

 

A wild donkey accustomed to the wilderness,That sniffs the wind in her passion.In the time of her heat who can turn her away?All who seek her will not become weary;In her month they will find her. (Jeremiah 2:24) 

So a donkey is led by its passion, it is not too smart and it is not too brave. It also has other characteristics. I am told by others who are knowledgeable about such things that a donkey is, above all, a very stubborn animal. (I have to be careful because “donkey” is sometimes a derogatory label. I live in England where “donkey” is a derogatory term for an Irish laborer by English people.)

But we are also told other things about the nature of a donkey: it is stiff-necked. The Hebrew idiom for being stubborn is “stiff-necked”. (Acts 7:51) In the Old Testament when we see the term “stubborn”, the Hebrew is “stiff-necked”.

A man who hardens his neck after much reproofWill suddenly be broken beyond remedy. (Proverbs 29:1) 

They stiffen their neck and their neck is broken—they are killed and therefore “beyond remedy”. Donkeys are figures of fallen man. God applies them to backslidden Israel.

(Again, I do not use the term in an anti-Semitic way or an anti-Irish way. My own family, in fact, is a combination of Jewish and Irish, so I am not against my own kind. I am using the term in the sense the Prophets did.)

Israel is compared to a wild donkey. What are people like? Remember that Israel is a microcosm of the human condition. According to 1 Corinthians 10, God uses them to teach what people are like. Other nations will do the same things like Israel. If God had chosen someone else other than Israel, I guarantee you the Filipinos or Norwegians would have done the same things as Israel. Just look at the Church; the Church has gone the same way as Israel.It will stiffen its neck, it will stiffen its neck, it will stiffen its neck, but then its neck will be broken beyond remedy. It is stupid, cowardly, governed by its passions and stubborn. In fact, it is self-destructively stubborn. That is the nature of a donkey.

Nonetheless, it has at least one other characteristic anatomically. I do not know why, but I have seen donkeys, and it has been pointed out to me in California by people who are ranchers who have donkeys, and it is a characteristic that of all the quadrupeds, donkeys are the ones who have a cross on their back. Why did God put a cross on the back of such an ignoble animal? It is not a noble animal, but a stupid one. It is a stubborn one, a rebellious one.

Broken Beyond Remedy


A donkey cannot help being a donkey. It is born stupid, it is born lazy, it is born driven by passion (governed by hormonal metabolism), it is born with a stiff neck. It is naturally stubborn. There is nothing we can do with a donkey—it must be redeemed by the lamb. There is no other hope for the donkey. If the donkey is not redeemed by the lamb, its neck must be broken, and it will be broken suddenly.

 

We cannot help what we are. We may be born Jew, we may be born Gentile; we may be born Black, we may be born Asian or Hispanic or Caucasian; we may be born male or female. We are born and that is what we are. We cannot control it. None of us had any control over the circumstances of our birth. There was one person who could have controlled the circumstances of His birth, but He chose to be born a member of a despised race in a stable in an occupied country and of a non-affluent family in order to identify with and redeem us. He was the only one who could have chosen it, but the rest of us had no choice.

We cannot help the fact that we are stupid, but that is what we are. We are certainly spiritually stupid. We cannot help the fact that we are spiritually lazy. We cannot help the fact that we are driven by passion. We cannot help the fact that we are what we are: stubborn. That is the human condition. There is no hope for such creatures other than redemption by the Lamb. If they are not redeemed by the Lamb, their stubbornness will kill them. He who stiffens his neck will suddenly have it broken beyond remedy.

There are people who hear the Gospel, we witness to them, we tell them the Gospel over and over and over and they will not listen. I am even talking about members of our own family. They will not listen, and suddenly their neck will be broken beyond remedy. When the donkey’s neck is broken, it is dead; it is beyond remedy—there is no hope. It is a one-way ticket to hell with no way out. Their own stubbornness will be the cause of their own destruction. Their own unbelief, their own rejection of the cross, their own refusal to repent and accept the Gospel will cause them to be destroyed beyond remedy. It does not matter what they say now. I guarantee you the second they give up the ghost they will no longer be Darwinists; the second they give up the ghost they will no longer be atheists; the second they give up the ghost they will no longer be homosexuals; the second they give up the ghost they will no longer be anything.One of the things which makes people really stubborn is religion. 

They cling to the faith of the fathers, simply thinking that because that was what their fathers believed it makes it right.

Abraham’s Descendants


What are we told will come about concerning the Arab nations? We are told they will be “a wild donkey of a man”.

 

“He will be a wild donkey of a man,His hand will be against everyone,And everyone’s hand will be against him;And he will live to the east of all his brothers.” (Genesis 16:12) 

I have witnessed to many people, but I have lived for many years in the Middle East. I always say that the two most difficult people to see get saved are Orthodox Jews and Arab Muslims. Asian Muslims are generally easier than Arab ones. The anthropological descendants of Abraham are the most difficult. Salvation would come through the seed of Abraham, so we would think that descendants of Abraham anthropologically—Jews and Arabs, would be the first to get saved by the promise to Abraham of the Messiah. No, they are the two hardest. “He will be a wild donkey of a man” speaks to the stubbornness of Islam. But it goes beyond this; look at what Moses said about Israel.

“Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people. (Deuteronomy 9:6)

In Hebrew, Moses tells the Jews they are a “stiff-necked” people.

“So circumcise your heart, and stiffen your neck no longer. (Deuteronomy 10:16)

Circumcision is an Old Testament shadow of salvation, of course, as we are told in Romans and Jeremiah. “Stop stiffening your neck! Believe! Get saved! Get converted!” But it does not work.

The LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, they are an obstinate people. (Exodus 32:9)

In Hebrew, “obstinate” literally means “stiff-necked”. (If someone calls Jews “stiff-necked” it is a generally anti-Semitic term. We should not say it to Jewish people today because it will hurt our witness to them; I am using the term in the biblical sense.)What happens to Israel if they continue to stiffen their neck?

“Now do not stiffen your neck like your fathers, but yield to the LORD and enter His sanctuary which He has consecrated forever, and serve the LORD your God, that His burning anger may turn away from you. (2 Chronicles 30:8)

God is angry and He is angry at sin; He is angry at the human condition. He is angry at Israel and He is angry with Abraham’s other descendants, the Arab nations. God is angry at the Arab world and God is angry with the backslidden Church. He is angry and His anger will be vented; His wrath will be poured out. Every micro speck of God’s wrath and anger is going to be poured out. The only question is upon whom. Those who stiffen their neck and refuse to believe, the wrath of God will come upon them. For those who do repent and believe, the wrath of God was poured out on the Lamb.

The Worst Jackass


Let me tell you about the worst jackass I ever met in my life. I mean, this guy was a real jackass. I still run into him from time to time, especially when I am shaving or brushing my teeth. When he was sixteen years old he was fooling around with heroin and cocaine. He thought a biochemistry exam was no problem if he took enough speed to win the fifth at New Market. That is how I got through college. I was immoral, a communist, self-destructive. What a jackass! What a moron! What a loser! What a reprobate! That is all I was. I was nothing but a jackass.

 

Why should God become a man to die in place of a cocaine addict? I do not know, but I know He did. I cannot understand the depths of His wrath, but neither can I understand the depths of His love.

I had been saved for some time before I understood what “personal Savior” really meant. I thought it was just the colloquialism that meant I had accepted Him personally—that is only half of what it means. What it means in its totality is that if I were the only one who ever sinned, if we were the only one who ever sinned, He would have come to the cross just for us. He is not just the Savior of all of us, He is the Savior of each of us. He would have went to that cross just for me and just for you.

Everything I did, every drug I sold, every woman I slept with (other than my wife), every joint I ever rolled, every line of coke—everything was poured out on Him. The jackass was redeemed by the Lamb. I am not proud of who I was or what I did; it cost Christ His life. But I cannot deny what I did and He did for me. It does not matter how successful or educated or attractive somebody is, a jackass is still a jackass. It must be redeemed by the Lamb.

No, it is not just the Jews, it is not just the Arabs, it is all of us. But what happened to God’s own people when they stiffened their neck?

“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am about to bring on this city and all its towns the entire calamity that I have declared against it, because they have stiffened their necks so as not to heed My words.’” (Jeremiah 19:15)

Their neck is broken beyond remedy. It does not only happen to individuals, it happens to societies and nations. It does not just happen to jackasses, it happens to herds of jackasses. And this is what this country has become, a herd of jackasses driven by passion who are stubborn, self-destructively stupid and too cowardly to face the reality.

That is what happens when a donkey is not redeemed; its neck will be broken beyond remedy. The second they die they will know what they rejected and, in some cases, what they mocked and belittled. It was the only thing that ever could have saved them. So many of these guys are arrogant like Bill Maher on television. Who do they think they are mocking? God will not be mocked. (Gal. 6:7) They have no wisdom because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. (Prov. 9:10) The second they die they are broken beyond remedy.

The Way of Balaam


Let us look at the other side of the coin. Let us see what happens when a donkey does get redeemed by the Lamb, this cowardly animal, this stubborn animal, this lazy animal, this passion-driven animal, and above all this stubborn, stiff-necked animal.

 

forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet. (2 Peter 2:15-16)

A redeemed donkey is always better than a mad prophet. A follower of Brigham Young, Charles Taze Russell, or Rev. Moon—even a jackass is not that stupid providing it has been redeemed.In my youth there was a comedy television program which aired on Sunday nights, “Mr. Ed the Talking Horse”. (His voice sounded like Nixon.) It was modeled after a series of comedy films in the late 30s and 40s with the actor Donald O’Connor called “Frances the Talking Mule”. The character Donald O’Connor played was not very clever but the mule was.

The donkey provided a warning. And here is mentioned “the way of Balaam”, who for profit loved the wages of unrighteousness but was rebuked by a donkey.

‘But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality. (Revelation 2:14)

Of course, Balaam did it for money. Serving as a metaphor for the devil, Balak offered Balaam money. Jesus uses this to explain spiritual seduction and false religion—eating food sacrificed to idols.As believers we understand this to be transubstantiation and the Eucharist. They say that it is Christ incarnate, that it is not a memorial, that it is protoplasmically Jesus Christ, that He dies again sacramentally and then He is eaten cannibalistically. I do not think Catholics are cannibals, but they think they are cannibals. That is what it is says in their Catechism—they actually think it is a cannibalistic ritual. Balaam did it for money. Someone has to be a jackass to believe that stuff.

There is always a financial angle. It does not matter what religion it is, it is always a racket. No matter what false cult it is, which televangelist, or which false religion, there is always a racket.But a redeemed donkey was able to see through Balaam.

“Now, therefore, please come, curse this people for me since they are too mighty for me; perhaps I may be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.” (Numbers 22:6)

Notice that the devil says the opposite of the Lord. God says, “I will bless those who bless Israel and I will curse those who curse Israel” (Gen. 12:3); Satan, however, will curse those who bless Israel and bless those who curse Israel.

But God Was Angry


Remember, the Lord is angry. His anger is going to be poured out. It is either going to be poured out on the Lamb or it is going to be poured out on the donkey, but one way or the other, somebody is going to pay. Every wrong thing I ever did, every wrong thing you ever did, somebody is going to pay.

 

But God was angry because he was going, and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as an adversary against him. Now he was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him. When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand, the donkey turned off from the way and went into the field; but Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back into the way. Then the angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path of the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she pressed herself to the wall and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall, so he struck her again. The angel of the LORD went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn to the right hand or the left.

(Unsaved people will always find themselves in a situation they ultimately cannot get out of. Unsaved people, be it on their deathbed or sooner, will be confronted with their reality; they will always find themselves in a situation they cannot get out of, and an angry God is going to be standing in front of them.)

When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam was angry and struck the donkey with his stick. And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” Then Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a mockery of me! If there had been a sword in my hand, I would have killed you by now.”

(Notice how he talks to the donkey as if it is a normal conversation. When we go to the post office and talk to an unsaved postal clerk, we forget that we are talking to an unredeemed donkey. The waitress in a restaurant is an unredeemed donkey. The mechanic working on our car is an unredeemed donkey. The dentist polishing our teeth is an unredeemed donkey. We talk to donkeys as if it is normal because we forget that is what they are. I try to carry Gospel tracts wherever I go and to have my pocket Bible. It becomes normal for us to interact with unsaved people. We talk to them as if it is a normal thing.)

The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I ever been accustomed to do so to you?” And he said, “No.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed all the way to the ground

(In Hebrew this would be an act of worship.)

The angel of the LORD said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way was contrary to me. “But the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, I would surely have killed you just now, and let her live.” Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the way against me. Now then, if it is displeasing to you, I will turn back.” But the angel of the LORD said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but you shall speak only the word which I tell you.” So Balaam went along with the leaders of Balak. (Numbers 22:22-35)

First of all, we have not “an” angel of the Lord, but “the” angel of the Lord. This is the one known in Judaism as the “Metatrone”; it is a Christophany, an Old Testament enfleshment of Christ. It is the angel who wrestled with Jacob at Penuel at the Brook of Jabbok. It is the angel of the Lord who went before Israel. It is an Old Testament manifestation of the Lord Jesus. And again we see He is angry.

The Redeemed Donkey


Once a donkey has been redeemed, and this donkey had to have been redeemed, otherwise his neck would have been broken, it is able to see the Lord when others cannot. Unsaved people cannot see Jesus. We do not see Him physically, although sometimes Christians may in some kind of vision like Paul did or something like that, but we will one day see Him physically. Nonetheless, we are aware of His presence. Unsaved people do not see the Lord, but a redeemed donkey does.

 

Secondly, although donkeys are fearful animals, something happens. I once took my son down the Grand Canyon. They went down there on these donkeys. (I did not try it myself because I would have had to carry the donkey back up myself after crushing it under my weight.) The ledges of the Grand Canyon are about a mile deep and very narrow. It is amazing how sure-footed those creatures truly are. They can actually do things which horses cannot. What used to be cowardice now becomes sure-footedness. The donkey knows where to go and where not to go.

A redeemed donkey who had a drinking problem will stay away from a saloon. If they used to be a gambler they will stay away from a race track. A donkey knows where to go, and where not to, once it has been redeemed.

But something else happens, in that this fearful animal now becomes a brave one. Balaam keeps beating him. It was only that persecuted donkey that stopped the wrath of God from falling on him.

Because of these churches in countries where they are persecuted, it is only the sacrifices of the faithful saints which stops the judgment of God from coming against those nations and those societies. A redeemed donkey that is willing to be persecuted can delay the wrath of God.

I honestly believe we are at the precipice—the threshold—of persecution of the Church in the Protestant democracies, and the only thing that is going to stop the wrath of God and His judgment from falling on America more than it already is, is a faithful Church that is willing to be persecuted. Most of the Church will not be willing to be persecuted because most of the Church is no longer faithful to Jesus. I speak in countries where the Church is persecuted. I speak in Muslim countries and I go to places where I see what it is really like.

A Redeemed Donkey Speaks & Sees


He hits the donkey again and then the donkey speaks.

 

I do not know too much about veterinary anatomy, but I suppose it is the same as for a human, that the jawbone facilitates speech. A donkey cannot say anything before it gets redeemed. All a donkey can do is to bray like the vain philosophies of this world, bray like secular existentialism, bray like Darwinism, bray like Marxist dialectics, bray like situational eliptics—that is all a jackass can say until it gets redeemed and God gets hold of its jaw. How many Philistines were slain with a jawbone of an ass? (Jdg. 15:15-17) That is what happens when a donkey has been redeemed; now he speaks the Word of God.

The donkey causes a situation to come about where Balaam now sees the Lord. “You are My witnesses”, says the Lord. (Lk. 24:48; Acts 1:8) Balaam sees the anger of an angry God hovering over Him. “It is only that donkey whom you have been beating that stopped My wrath from coming upon you”. He uses us to cause others to see His anger.

And what is the first thing God says to Balaam? The first words out of God’s mouth are “Why are you beating that donkey?” When Rabbi Shaul of Tarsus, who we now know as Paul the Apostle, was knocked off that horse, the first thing the Lord said to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?” (Acts 9:2) It was another way of asking, “You are beating that donkey? Persecuting the Church?”

When the donkey has been redeemed, everything changes. A stupid animal becomes intelligent, a lazy one becomes industrious, a stubborn one gives himself over willingly to the purpose of God, a cowardly one becomes brave, something given over to passion now become motivated by something that transcends the highest human ideal. This is what happens when the donkey has been redeemed by the Lamb.

The Messianic Fulfillment


In Zechariah we have a prophecy which even the rabbis acknowledge is a prophecy about the Messiah.

 

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!Behold, your king is coming to you;He is just and endowed with salvation,Humble, and mounted on a donkey,Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zechariah 9:9)

That is the prophecy, let us see the fulfillment.

When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her…

(Notice there is always two to represent both Israel and the Church.)

… untie them and bring them to Me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

“SAY TO THE DAUGHTER OF ZION,‘BEHOLD YOUR KING IS COMING TO YOU,GENTLE, AND MOUNTED ON A DONKEY,EVEN ON A COLT, THE FOAL OF A BEAST OF BURDEN.’”

(Remember, these donkeys would have had to have been redeemed by a lamb or they would have had to be killed.)

The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their coats on them; and He sat on the coats. Most of the crowd spread their coats in the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them in the road. The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,

“Hosanna to the Son of David;BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD;Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:1-9)

Once the donkey has been redeemed, he becomes a carrier of Christ and His salvation to Whom others call out, “Save us! Save us, O Son of David!”

Conclusion


This is what happens when the donkey is redeemed by the Lamb. The coward becomes brave, the stupid become clever, the passion-driven becomes God-driven. They have a passion for the right things now. What used to be fear is now sure-footedness—it knows to “go here” and “do not go there”. He sees the Lord. Where he could only bray, he now speaks His word—God’s own words come out of his mouth. He becomes a carrier of Christ, one who is even willing to be persecuted, one who can withhold the judgment of an angry God. He becomes one who is the bearer of His salvation. I am convinced that this is why, of all the quadrupeds, God put the cross on the back of the donkey. That is what happens when the donkey is redeemed by the Lamb.

 

If you are reading this, and you do not know Jesus, I am not going to tell you, “Do not be a jackass”. You cannot help being a jackass. We are all jackasses because that is the human condition, that is fallen man, and God is angry. He is going to cause something to happen. You are going to cause something to happen because God is going to break your neck. Your own stubbornness will destroy you; there is no hope for you just as there is no hope for me. What can be done with a donkey? Nothing, because it is a donkey. There is no hope for the donkey so break his neck. He is too stupid, too stubborn and too passion-driven. There is no hope for that donkey, no hope except one: you must be redeemed by the Lamb.God bless. 

 

Staying the course amidst isolation

By David Passmore • May 30, 2026
Staying The Course Amidst Isolation Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Living in Israel one gets the feeling that the metaphorical walls are closing in. Israel's reputation is being tarnished all over social media and the mainstream media, and this is reflected in massive public disdain towards this country. We are constantly told that there is near consensus amongst academics and commentators that a genocide was committed in Gaza. The very legitimacy of the state is brought into question. The majority of Americans are now hostile towards Israel. There is real fear that the next U.S. administration will turn against Israel. Even if this were to happen passively, by the U.S. refraining from exercising its veto power towards Security Council Resolutions condemning Israeli actions this could be catastrophic. Internally it is a fractured society leaning increasingly right wing which further alienates Israel from world opinion. An example in point is how Ben Gvir mocked the most recent participants of a global aid flotilla to Gaza. Such conduct further agitates outrage at Israel. The left-wing media presents the ruins of Gaza as a mortal wound in Israel's side. When the world observes this level of carnage no degree of public relations can ameliorate the sense of indignation towards Israel. We can liken the situation of Israel to that of a depressed person. All he sees is hopelessness and gloom. But this isn't the first time that the Jewish nation has been faced with such darkness. Things change and we don't know how the geo-political map will reconfigure in the future. We need to ride out this storm and keep going. On a historical note, the situation is reminiscent of what our ancestors faced when we returned from the Babylonian exile to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was faced with constant lies and conspiracies designed to entrap him by hostile actors: Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem the Arab. They employed deception, slander and ridicule in order to maintain their political eminence. There was also a certain sense of abandonment amongst the Jews in Israel then as in our own day. We read in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah about the anguish of the leadership in Israel concerning the lack of assistance from the Babylonian diaspora towards the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and the Temple. Only 20% of the exiles returned to the land. It was largely the poor who returned. Most of the affluent, established Jews remained in Exile. This is a continuing theme in Jewish history. It is also important to observe that from its very beginnings there were bible believing Christians who spearheaded the return of the Jews to their land. The idea of organizing a return of the Jews to Israel began as a Protestant Restorationist objective that can be traced to 17th century Puritan England. The protagonists of the Cromwellian Republic viewed themselves as the new Israel fighting the Papist forces of Satan. Alongside this, interest grew in the notion that biblical prophecies pertaining to the return of the Jews to Israel were a necessary precursor for the return of Christ. The growth of the British Empire in the 19th century lent political clout to Christian Restorationism with specific missions to the Jews established. Although there had been a longing to return to Israel as written in the thrice daily Amidah prayer, Jewish Zionism arose in the midst of mid nineteenth century nationalism and was further fermented by European antisemitism. It was an altogether secular enterprise. Although Israel's situation appears rather stark, we can draw strength from the Providence afforded to our ancestors in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah when they too were faced with defamation. This is also an opportunity to grow closer to our natural allies in the evangelical world who from the beginning of Zionism were steadfast supporters of the project to establish a Jewish homeland in Israel.  (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).

Signs of the Times - Tony Pearce

By David Passmore • May 25, 2026
Signs of the Times Tony Pearce ‍ ‍ Left, right or center – is our democracy in danger “Things fall apart, the center does not hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” W.B Yeats ‘The Second Coming. ’ ‍ ‍ Labour’s losses in the council elections and the battle for succession to their unpopular leader Kier Starmer have raised the possibility that we may soon have our seventh Prime Minister in ten years. Local elections saw Reform and the Greens make sweeping gains, leading Green Party leader, Zack Polanski to say that we are seeing ‘the end of the old two party system’. Maybe we are. In which case what comes next? Will we head to the far left, the far right or will the center hold on to power? Or will it end with ungovernable chaos as unqualified people take control of local and national government? Behind all this there are fundamental questions, ‘What is government for? Who does it represent and where is it going?’ ‍ ‍‍ ‍ According to the Bible (Romans 13) the purpose of government is to promote good and restrain evil. The government has the right to raise taxes for the common good of society and people should pay them. In 1 Timothy 2 Paul encourages us to pray for the government that ‘we may live a godly and peaceable life’. In other words, pray that the government will create an orderly and peaceful society and not interfere with our right to set up communities that teach and preach the Word of God. The situation becomes more difficult when we see government promoting things which are harmful and restraining things which are good and clamping down on freedom of speech with a threat to our ability to live a ‘godly and peaceable life’ ‍ Since becoming a Christian in my early twenties, I have wrestled with the question of how our faith applies to contemporary political issues. I started this quest on the left politically after leaving university and working as an English teacher with sympathies for Marxism. I then became a born again Christian in 1970, and joined my late wife Nikki in evangelizing the radical left, by handing out leaflets at their marches and demonstrations in London and attending their meetings to discuss matters of faith and politics with them. ‍ ‍‍ ‍ We had some good discussions with people and hope we made some consider the Christian alternative. However as we looked at Marxism from a Christian point of view and its practice in Communist countries, we understood that behind this ideology there is a strong anti-christian spirit. It denies the existence of God and promotes the idea of human perfectibility by our own effort. This is exemplified in the words of the Internationale, the socialist battle hymn, ‘No saviour from on high delivers, no faith have we in prince or peer, our own right hand the chains will shiver, chains of hatred, greed and fear.’ This Antichrist spirit led to the persecution of Christians in the Communist countries of eastern Europe, the Soviet Union and China. Far from creating the socialist paradise on earth that Lenin wrote about in ‘Socialism and Religion’, it created a society ruled by hatred, greed and fear, controlled by secret police, prison camps and responsible for the death of millions. ‍ ‍ In western society we have witnessed the growth of ‘cultural Marxism’ a movement aimed at infiltrating and changing society from within, rather than fomenting the workers’ revolution. Labour’s Fabian Society, with its (now discarded) logo of the wolf in sheep’s clothing, has been engaged in this process since the beginning of the 20th century. Social change really took off with the permissive society in the 1960s, which succeeded in changing traditional values, especially in the area of sex and the family. It replaced biblical values with a new ‘morality’ that is fundamentally anti Christian. These ideas have permeated large swathes of our society including the education system, the judiciary, the Civil Service, much of the media, mainstream political parties (including even the Conservative ‘wets’ and parts of the established church). ‍ ‍ Melanie Phillips describes the results of this in her book, ‘The Builder’s Stone.’ ‘Having decided that the West was rotten to the core, western elites set out to create a new culture that would usher in the brotherhood of man and eradicate hatred, prejudice, and war. Their Brave New World junked biblical religion with all its constraints on behaviour and revolved instead around self gratification. Everybody had the right to live as they wanted; nobody could say that their way of life was better or worse than anyone else’s; no one had the right to say that their culture was better than any other culture. That was ‘racism.’ At the heart of all this was the doctrine that there was no such thing as objective truth. Everything was relative; everything was a matter of opinion. Because there was no truth feelings became more important than facts. So the West abandoned the codes of morality, conscience, truth and lies, personal responsibility, and duty to others in favour of a culture of the self. In the process it junked its inherited traditions and biblical codes on which western culture was based.’ ‍ Britain changed from being a society that respected values based on the 10 Commandments and the teaching of Jesus Christ to one that discarded them for relative values. Ideas of ‘diversity, inclusion and equity’ became the norm, together with and a form of ‘tolerance’, that is really very intolerant if you oppose it. This ‘tolerance’ means accepting the virtues of multiculturalism and humanism and believing that all gods are equally valid or true (or none are). We must also accept that all lifestyles and family arrangements including homosexual and transsexual ones are just as valid as traditional two parent heterosexual families, with a father and mother committed to each other in lifelong matrimony looking after their own children. ‍ As society accepts this radical change in how we view culture, morality and religion, we are told not to criticize other cultures and world views or imply that they are anything less than equal to the culture, morality and faith derived from the Bible. ‍ All this has not improved society. Instead we have a collapse of values with no central idea to hold it together, just a group of competing ‘communities’ which are often only united in opposition to the traditional values and culture of Great Britain. A good example of this is the ‘red – green alliance’ of radical leftists and Islamists who come together to denounce Israel and campaign to ‘globalise the Intifada’. In practice this means a world wide war against Israel and Judaeo-Christian society and a desire to replace it with their version of either Islamism or Communism. However if one of them were to come to power, you can be sure that the Islamist’s would get rid of the leftists or vice versa. In fact that happened in Iran’s 1979 revolution, when Islamist supporters of Khomeini and Communists came together to get rid of the Shah. Then the Islamists seized power, turned on the Communists and wiped them out. ‍ Alisteir Heath wrote in the Daily Telegraph: ‘Ruined by decades of political vandalism, the Britain we knew and loved, a land of stability, pragmatism, and ancient freedoms, is no more. Today’s UK is uglier, impoverished, volatile and disorderly. We’ve lost our level-headedness. Anger and frustration have become our defining emotions. Our institutions have wasted away, and we have been taught to despise our history. The decline of family, community and faith have led to alienation, dependence on welfare and the rise of novel ideologies, mostly secular but also sectarian, turbocharged by social media. While the state becomes unnervingly authoritarian, the air reeks of insurrection and every variety of extremism. The British public’s sense of betrayal is as well-founded as it is dangerous. The machinery of state is incompetent and self-serving, a vehicle for social engineering in the global interest.’ ‍ ‍ ‍ Criticism of this process now risks being classed as ‘hate crime’ with a growing authoritarian society monitoring social media posts and public teaching of alternative ideas in ways which risk shutting down free speech in our society. A Christian teacher Enoch Burke is currently in prison in Dublin after he was suspended from his job and jailed after refusing to accept and teach transgenderism in the school. ‍ ‍ ‍ Nick Timothy, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice, got into trouble when he questioned mass Muslim prayer in Trafalgar Square. He wrote: ‘Mass ritual prayer in public places is an act of domination. The adhan – which declares there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger – is, when called in a public place, a declaration of domination. The domination of public places is straight from the Islamist playbook.” He is right in this. Allah hu Akhbar actually means Allah is greater, greater than your God, Muhammad is greater than Jesus and the Koran is greater than the Bible. ‍ ‍ ‍ Tim Dieppe of Christian Concern for our Nation wrote: “The fact that we have mass Islamic prayer in Trafalgar Square at all is indicative of the massive culture change that we have seen in the last few decades. A culture change that was not voted for or ever agreed to by the British people. And, a culture change that can hardly be described as having been entirely beneficial to our culture as a whole. I only need to mention grooming gangs involving mostly Pakistani Muslim men , sharia courts, honour crimes, terror attacks, the assassination of an MP, an attempt to blockade Parliament, mass antisemitic marches through London, a convicted terrorist standing for local elections, sectarianism, and many other examples to make the point. Earlier this month, the Government gave Muslims special protection with the adoption of an official definition of anti-Muslim hostility .” ‍ ‍ ‍ You are not really supposed to question this in public life today. A message circulating on social media is an apt commentary on all this. ‘First they overlook evil, then they permit evil, then they legalise evil, then they promote evil, then celebrate evil, then persecute those who call it evil.’ Soviet dissident Solzhenitsyn wrote: ‘A Communist system can be recognised by how it spares criminals and criminalises its opponents.’ ‍ ‍ ‍ The root cause of all this is the rejection of God and biblical values. The 18th-century French philosopher Joseph de Maistre coined the phrase "people get the government they deserve." David Pawson followed up on this idea, arguing that in democratic societies like ours, the moral and spiritual condition of a nation's citizens is directly reflected in the leaders they elect. If the general public abandons moral truths, they will inevitably vote for governments that reflect those same compromises. David Pawson taught that God may use governmental leadership to judge or bless a nation, depending on the people's obedience. He noted that Hebrew prophets saw wicked rulers as a form of divine judgement on a society that has strayed from God's laws. Therefore a nation's ultimate hope rests on repentance rather than just political change. His conclusion is that Christians should actively stand for moral truth in society. He believed that the church is meant to influence culture upward, and that a decline in national morality inevitably leads to deteriorating governance. ‍ ‍ ‍ Sadly much of the church today has become the ‘salt that has lost its savour’ through compromise with antichristian forces in society and government. It may be too late to save our country and western democracy as social and economic pressures create a collapse of democracy and push us either towards anarchy or dictatorship. ‍ ‍ ‍ Yeats’ poem quoted at the beginning of this article ends with the enigmatic line ‘Some rough beast slouches towards Bethlehem to be born.’ Most likely he is referring to the coming anti-Messiah who is labelled the Beast in the book of Revelation. Many believe his is now waiting in the wings to replace the true Messiah (born in Bethlehem) and bring in the dictatorship prophesied in Revelation 13. The Bible indicates that the Beast or Antichrist will have power for a moment, but it will be short lived and doomed to destruction at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the earth. Then the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our God and of His Messiah and He shall reign forever and ever (Revelation 11.15) and the ‘government shall be on His shoulder’ (Isaiah 9.6). ‍ ‍ ‍ Maranatha come Lord Jesus. ‍ ‍ ‍ Water, water nowhere and not a drop to drink. (Apologies to the Ancient Mariner) ‍ ‍‍ ‍ While nations worry about supply of oil and gas as a result of the war in the Gulf and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a much more vital commodity for human survival is water. And it is in short supply in a growing number of nations. ‍ ‍ As of 2026, over 25 countries face extremely high water stress, with the most severe crises located in the Middle East and North Africa. This region is home to the world's most water-stressed nations, including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen, and Libya. India and Pakistan face critical water scarcity due to overexploitation of aquifers and population density. Much of Africa , Somalia and Ethiopia in particular are facing severe shortages due to drought and climate change. Mexico and parts of the United States (particularly Texas and the west coast) are experiencing significant water shortages and declining groundwater levels. ‍ ‍ ‍ Iran is facing a severe, multi-year water crisis as of May 2026, with major cities like Tehran, Mashhad, and Karaj approaching the point where taps could run dry due to depleted reservoirs. Groundwater is depleted across most of the country, and nineteen provinces are experiencing severe drought. The crisis is driven by a combination of climate change and decades of poor water management, including excessive dam construction and inefficient, water-intensive agriculture. China is facing a severe, multi-faceted water crisis defined by extreme scarcity in the north, widespread pollution, and mismanagement, threatening its food supply and economic growth. ‍ ‍ ‍ Several countries are significantly affected by upstream dam construction that reduces downstream water flow, causing, environmental, and diplomatic crises. These countries include Iraq, heavily impacted by dams built on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers by Turkey and Iran, leading to reduced water for agriculture, destruction of forests, and increased sandstorms. Egypt and Sudanface significant water security risks due to the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile. Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laosare affected of dams built by China on the upper Mekong River ‍ ‍ One country which bucks this trend is Israel. Israel manages its water resources by transforming a chronic shortage into a surplus through large-scale desalination, extensive wastewater recycling, and a centralised national water carrier system. The agriculture sector has shifted away from freshwater, using treated effluent instead. Advanced drip irrigation technologies are widely used to minimise waste. Israel has exported its water technologies to countries around the world, particularly Africa where it has given advice on how to use limited water resources to great effect. ‍ ‍ ‍ Without water no society on earth can survive. Bible prophecies indicate that water shortage and pollution will be a global problem in the last days. Most obviously no water equals no food, so famine is an inevitable result of water shortages. Jesus warned of this as a sign of the last days in Matthew 24.7. Revelation 8.10-11 speaks of something called ‘Wormwood’ falling on rivers and springs of water causing it to become bitter and many to die from drinking it. ‍ ‍ Prophecy speaks of the two great rivers of the ancient world, the Nile and the Euphrates, being affected by a crisis causing the Euphrates to dry up (Revelation 16.12) and the Nile to become contaminated and its waters turn foul (Isaiah 19.5-11). Isaiah 24 speaks of a curse devouring the earth in the last days causing the earth to be ‘defiled (or polluted) under its inhabitants.’ ‍ ‍ ‍ According to the New Scientist, there are massive amounts of water hidden deep beneath the Earth's surface. Scientists have found evidence of a reservoir of water three times the volume of all surface oceans combined, located roughly 250–400 miles underground within the mantle. ‍ ‍ ‍ It may be that the Lord will release this water to replenish and clean up the earth in the Millennial kingdom when ‘waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water.’ Isaiah 35. Zechariah 14.8-9 says, ‘In that day it shall be that living waters shall flow from Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea; In both summer and winter it shall occur. And the Lord shall be King over all the earth.’ Zechariah 14.8-9. See also Ezekiel 47. ‍ Rethinking Russia ‍ Things are not going well for Vladimir Putin in his ‘special military operation’. Four years after invading Ukraine in February 2022, Russia is not making advances and actually losing ground. Russia is losing as many as 25,000- 35,000 casualties a month and over 1.2 million have been killed and wounded since the war began. Ukrainian skills in drone warfare have destroyed large quantities of Russian equipment, tanks, armoured personnel carriers, artillery and rocket systems, helicopters, and naval vessels. ‍ ‍ Russia is spending an estimated 40% of the entire federal budget on the war effort. As a result of this and western sanctions, Russia is increasingly unable to fix chronic infrastructure problems at home. During the bitter Russian winter thousands of people were left without heat, light, or even water. All forms of transport, trains, trucks and planes, are facing logistical problems, making it difficult to transport goods and people across the vast Russian regions. Russia is on the way to an infrastructure collapse that will likely take decades to recover. ‍ ‍ Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov warned the State Duma that Russia's faltering economy risks stoking a 1917-style revolution. He demanded urgent financial and economic measures by autumn to avert a potential economic collapse. This raises the danger of the Russian Federation fracturing. The Caucuses are restive, the far east is looking to China and Siberia is facing an acute problem as a result of melting permafrost, causing buildings, bridges and pipelines to collapse. ‍ ‍ In the present circumstances it is hard to see how Russia could lead the Gog and Magog invasion of Israel (Ezekiel 38-39). Some have said that it is more likely that Turkey is the lead power in the War of Gog and Magog. They say that Meshech and Tubal are not Moscow and Tobolsk, but regions of modern Turkey. Erdogan’s Turkey is backed by an Islamist world view hostile to Israel, seeking the recovery of its Ottoman Empire. He has his eyes on taking control of Jerusalem. Turkey is possession of a large land army already stationed in the region, some of it occupying part of Syria. ‍ ‍ The alternative is that the War of Gog and Magog is some way off, possibly part of Armageddon, giving time for Russia to recover from its present distress. We wait and see, but meanwhile spare a thought and a prayer for the people of Ukraine and Russia, suffering as a result of Putin’s futile war, oppressed by his corrupt dictatorship and facing an economic and social collapse caused by his failed policies. ‍ ‍

Trumps visit with Xi

By David Passmore • May 25, 2026
Trump's Visit with Xi Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The tempest path of Sino-U.S. tensions came to a head during Trump's first term in office with the outbreak of Covid. Many commentators believed that the deterioration in relations was in terminal decline and that a major confrontation in the straits of Taiwan was fast looming. Trump held China responsible for the spread of Covid, insisting that he would pursue reparations. The election of Biden halted this commitment. Biden sought a non-confrontational policy towards Beijing. In the aftermath of the disastrous premature withdrawal from Afghanistan handing that country over to the Taliban and the Russian invasion of Ukraine under his watch, Biden became too preoccupied to assertively engage with China. Chinese State media portrayed Trump's visit as being rather unremarkable in the context of other foreign dignitaries lining up to meet Xi, pointing out that just a week later Putin would arrive in Beijing. China manifests that it is winning the trade war that Trump began in 2018, beating America at its own game of capitalism. They frame the U.S. as being in a position of weakness because China is able to source whatever products they buy from the U.S. elsewhere like oil from Canada, and soybeans from Brazil. The oil, soybeans and 200 Boeing's Xi agreed to purchase from Trump were presented as a mere gesture to placate Trump as China has already bought 350 Air Buses in the last year. China would have the world believe that it is only semi-conductors where America has the edge. Here China hints that it is not likely to buy H200 Invidia Chips because it would mean that China will always lag behind the U.S. in building their AI tech. China's major contention and concern is that the U.S. may impose export controls to contain China. China's strategy instead is to invest massively on indigenous innovation. China wants to become an innovation powerhouse that will export its own Chips to the Global South. China is fast catching up with America's lead in AI with the launch of Deep Seek and they claim similar progress with Chip making. China is now ostensibly only eight months behind the U.S. on Large Language Models. Running contrary to this narrative Trump insists that China is desperate to trade with America. China's economy has now peaked. Emblematic of this stagnating growth is rising youth unemployment. China is no longer America's biggest trading partner. Trump has shifted manufacturing back to the U.S. and Trump believes that China can't revive its economy without America. Lined up to meet Xi with Trump were the heads of some of America's biggest Tech Corporations. Corporations like nvidia seek a relaxing of export controls for Chips as they want short term profits, ignoring the risk that China will reverse engineer this technology. More broadly, China and the U.S. are playing a geopolitical chess game spanning the globe. Trump outmaneuvered China in Latin America with the removal of Maduro from power in Venezuela. China is exploiting its influence on Iran in order to get Trump to refrain from taking more active steps towards the defense of Taiwan. Indeed, Trump didn't say anything about Taiwan during his visit. Trump's instincts are of a transactional approach towards alliances, where he is only willing to underwrite defense assistance if allies pay up as an insurer would. It is also important to note that saber rattling the Taiwan card also serves the CCP agenda to distract internal dissent concerning the state of the Chinese economy. Most imminently Trump needs China to pressure Iran to open the Straits of Hormuz and get oil prices down before the midterm elections. China has largely insulated itself from the Gulf energy impact due to stockpiles. Trump would also like China to stop providing Iran with GPS for its missiles. Other Chinese weapons systems and technology sold to Iran have failed to perform well against U.S. and Israeli military hardware. Matters boil down to a leverage between whatever Trump can do on Taiwan, China can do on the strait of Hormouz with Iran. Human Rights concerns, espionage and the alarming rate of Chinese acquisition of U.S. land have been placed on the back burner for the time being.  (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 for Phil Malone

By David Passmore • May 17, 2026
Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for Phil Malone and family “Please keep me and my family in prayer. My mum passed away on 13th May at the age of 93. It's a time of mourning, but may it be a time for the Gospel of Christ to be preached to my unbelieving family, especially my brother.”

Please Pray for Joanne Rizzetto, Pastor Dave Rizzetto's wife

By Mea Fredrickson • May 13, 2026
Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for Sister Joanne Rizzetto, wife of Pastor Dave Rizzetto of Church of The Open Door in New York City. Joanne has developed painful complications and adverse side effects from medications following knee surgery. May The Lord intervene for healing and give guidance to her physicians. Lord, we humbly ask you to intervene in the life of our dear sister. We know you can do all things and that you hear our prayers and consider your servants. Please put a stop to the adverse reaction. Restrain and reverse its effects and restore our sister so that she can continue to serve you in the ministry that you have called them to. We do glorify Your Name. We don't ask as those who treat you as our debtor, but as those who have tasted your goodness and found such mercy and compassion at your feet. Grace and peace and mercy be with Joanne and Pastor Dave.

Will Lebanon miss its golden opportunity?

By David Passmore • May 5, 2026
Will Lebanon miss its golden opportunity? Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Converging new facts on the ground have transformed the political landscape in Lebanon. With Assad removed from power in Syria, a vital lifeline of arms supplies for Hezbollah originating in Iran has diminished. Hezbollah suffered considerable losses in its last round of fighting with Israel. The decapitation of its leadership with the targeted pager attack inflicted a severe blow. Hezbollah's new leader Naim Qassem is a weak substitute for the charismatic Nasrallah who was assassinated by Israel in 2024. Hezbollah in its frail state foolishly fell into line with Iran's instruction to join the fighting against Israel following the recent American-Israeli war with Iran. This was contrary to the wishes of the Lebanese government which was fearful of the inevitable destruction that would be wreaked by the Israeli response. The differing attitudes to Israel amongst Lebanon's population is reflective of its ethnic composition. The predominant groups in order of plurality are Christians, Shia Muslims and Sunni Muslims with a smaller minority of Druze. The major concern of most Christians in Lebanon is the dire state of their economy. They have no appetite to further their plight by invoking Israel's rage. During the colonial inter war period the French envisaged the demarcation between Lebanon and Syria as carving out enclaves for Christian and Druze control. Within Lebanon there would be a shared government that by convention would have the Executive power split between a Christian President, a Sunni Prime Minister and Shia Speaker of Parliament. The Christians in southern Lebanon (particularly Maronite Catholics) saw themselves as being anthropologically descendants of ancient Phoenicians as opposed to an Arab identity where the Arab Christians were largely Eastern Orthodox. The schism between the Maronites and the Arab Eastern Orthodox dates back to the time of the Crusades. The Maronites were culturally French, speaking French as their main language and held precedence in much of the Lebanese economy. The first threat to Lebanese stability and cohesion was settled by the U.S. Eisenhower administration in 1958 which landed Marines in an amphibious operation. A repeated attempt at this by the Reagan administration in 1983 ended in a military disaster for the U.S. due to suicide bombings by Iranian controlled terrorists. Israeli efforts to bring in stability during the Lebanese Civil War in conjunction with its Lebanese Christian allies led by Major Saad Haddad likewise came to calamity when the Sabra and Shatila revenge attacks took place following the assassination of Lebanese leader Bashir Gemayel. The ''Good Fence'' policy of an Israeli friendly free Lebanon zone in Southern Lebanon eventually ended badly following Menachem Begin's second incursion into Lebanon called ''Shalom HaGalil'' aimed at stopping the PLO rocket attacks on Israeli border communities like Metulla, Kiryat Shmona, Naharya, Rosh Hanikra, Tzfat and Carmiel. The proxy Israeli occupation from the Israeli border to the Litani river became an imbroglio that many in Israel viewed as Israel's Vietnam with widespread domestic protest and a collapse of morale within the IDF. Eventually Israel absorbed Christian war refugees from Lebanon, while the Vatican and most of the Christian world turned their backs on the Lebanese Christians. Lebanon was then saddled with two states within a state. The first was in the aftermath of Black September in 1970 when King Hussein of Jordan defended his Hashemite throne and government from Yasser Arafat's attempt to take over Jordan due to Jordan having a 70% Palestinian Arab demographic majority. The Jordanian legion drove tens of thousands of its pro Arafat Jordanian citizens into Lebanon, creating a population base for the first state within a state under Arafat. However the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and other factions had their niche interests. Courtesy of the Israeli Air Force Arafat relocated what he saw as his government in exile to Tunisia. This was a missed opportunity by the Lebanese government to assert its autonomy and full territorial control by making a Camp David type peace with Israel inclusive of economic and mutual security provisions. Instead an Iranian backed Syrian intervention replaced Arafat's state within a state with a new one that morphed into Hezbollah. The fall of the Assad regime and the Israeli counter-offensive against Hezbollah re-presents Lebanon with the opportunity that it once lost. The predominantly Christian controlled Lebanese military could and should operationally coordinate with the IDF, to obliterate and remove Hezbollah as the Israelis relieved Lebanon of Arafat's state within a state. Such a rapprochement would likely have strong American and possibly French and British support, allowing Lebanon to be at a non-combative peace with Israel along the lines of Egypt and Jordan, and now some of the Emirates. The natural comradery of the Lebanese Druze community with the Israeli Druze and the pro-Israeli Druze of Syria would additionally re-enforce a regional harmony, as would the Maronite Christian community in Israel with their co-coreligionists in Lebanon.  (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).

Pastor John Angliss

By David Passmore • May 5, 2026
PASTOR JOHN ANGLISS It is with profound sadness that we learned of the temporary separation from our friend and brother Pastor John Angliss. We look forward to being reunited with John in the millennial reign of Christ and indeed in God's Eternal Kingdom. Jacob Prasch visited John a few weeks ago in the UK while John was in hospice care having been diagnosed preterminal in his illness. While medically correct, it was of course a misdiagnosis. John is now cancer free and is alive and well in the presence of Jesus awaiting us in glory while his mortal body is being renewed for resurrection and immortality. In the meanwhile, during this temporary season of bereavement we do request prayer for his beloved wife Mary and for his congregation, The Ark Fellowship in England near Reading, England. Because he has recently arrived in the USA and is scheduled to address the Moriel Canada branch conference in Winnipeg, Jacob Prasch will regrettably not be able to attend the memorial service in Britain. Our condolences however are very much with Mary and our brethren in the UK who like us knew and loved Pastor Angliss. John was one of a minority of faithful voices who upheld a traditional biblically based Pentecostalism in the era of counterfeit revivals and apostasy that overtook most of British Pentecostalism. John was a faithful friend of Israel & The Jews standing on the prophetic purposes of God for Israel and the salvation of the Jews. John was a loyal friend to Moriel and Jacob Prasch and a colleague of David Pawson and Derek Prince, both of whom likewise stood by God's promises to Israel. John was also a founding leader of CMFI - the Christian Ministerial Fellowship International, former pastor of Three Mile Cross fellowship , and former board member of Focus On Israel (a Pentecostal Ministry to the Jews). While this separation is temporary, John's eternal gain will be our temporary loss. O GRAVE - WHERE IS THEY VICTORY, O DEATH WHERE IS THY STING ? Hosea 13:14 / 1 Corinthians 15: 55-57

We made it this far: Israel at 78

By David Passmore • April 28, 2026
We made it this far: Israel at 78 Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Since the last anniversary milestone of Israel at 75, we have been embroiled in relentless wars. Citizens had little respite to enjoy this year's festivities, coming on the heels of a lull in fighting on the Iranian and Lebanese fronts. We are constantly waiting for a breakthrough on the horizon that will normalize our relations with our neighbors and secure our position on the world stage. It is acutely exhausting to be the focus of the world's attention. But also there is a sense of inevitability accompanying the Zionist project. Specifically that Israel is destined to be central in the wider region and global affairs. Why is this? Is it due to it being a western transplant? Being geographically positioned on the crossroads of three continents? Religious believers would point to prophetic fulfillment. It is short sighted to only look at how our problems are rooted in today’s' reality. Greater forces are at work that will dictate the direction that Israel is heading. The Jewish diaspora will likely find itself in a growing precarious position that will lead to increasing Aliyah (immigration to Israel) and will perhaps ferment the emergence of a second Jewish commonwealth that will not need to heed international pressure in the same way that todays' polity finds itself doing. In this light it is interesting to ponder how our posterity would view our predicament and gains. And I frame matters in these terms with intentionality. We are enmeshed in a seemingly intractable conflict with the Palestinians, and yet Israel has made great gains particularly in the technological fields. There is a current of thinking that perceives Israel's way out of its quagmire is by making itself indispensable to technological advancements. We don't know how tomorrows' world will be shaped by the rapidly advancing AI revolution but so far Israel has proven to be uniquely adaptable and innovative to technological change. This has proved to be a boon to Israel's economy, as have offshore natural gas discoveries being developed in concert with Greece, Greek Cypriot and American energy interests that are geographically and strategically removed from any Straits of Hormuz shipping impediments that strangle the Persian Gulf deposits shared by Qatar and Iran. On another note we should contextualize the situation. How different are Israel's challenges from other nations? Is Israel any less stable than other countries (particularly in the region)? Israel doesn't find itself uniquely challenged to define its identity (most European countries do also, particularly in light of immigration). Nor does the government experience any more volatility than other comparable democracies. Israel's real problems lay in the nature of how its Jewish citizens desire to govern themselves. It is arguable whether the judicial reform protests that occupied public discourse in pre-October 7th Israel would have led to serious civil strife. But it is without doubt that this impasse was allayed by the external attack. The underlying tensions remain unresolved and there are many ways that they could play out. It has been framed as a battle for Israel's soul. Israel's enemies predict that Zionism is imploding and that the State won't survive another 5-10 years. Supporting this claim, they point to Israel's increasing alienation and growing pariah status on the international stage. Our Prime Minister has been indicted for war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Even public opinion in our staunchest ally the U.S. has turned sharply against Israel. With 80% of the Democratic Party being anti-Israel in a growing climate of anti-semitism we have even witnessed the shift of Alan Dershowitz to the Republican Party which must be seen as emblematic of a trend. There is apprehension in Israel of a post-Trump America dominated by the Democrats. However, these seeming incontrovertible facts may be offset by other measures of fortitude. This may be partially countered by the high investment by Silicon Valley in the Israeli Hi-tech sector, making Israel an asset for purposes of Research and Development in America's AI race against China. New opportunities for economic relations have also been opened with Arab nations through the Abraham Accords and with the powerhouse India. Furthermore, it is difficult to imagine a world in which Israel's technological prowess will not carry the sway of western decision makers in the long run. Israel's 78th anniversary is a moment to take pause and not catastrophize what the future may behold. The entire world is currently in a state of transformation and Israel is not an outlier in this context.  (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).

Council attempts to shut down and censor local church’s evangelism efforts.

By David Passmore • April 23, 2026
Please click this link:https://mailchi.mp/christianconcern.com/action-alert-street-preaching-22-04-26?e=f1df30be3f

A critical juncture in NATO's future

By David Passmore • April 14, 2026
A critical juncture in NATO'S future Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM NATO was originally established in 1949 to keep the Russian hordes at bay from toppling those European countries not forked over to the Soviet sphere of influence at the Potsdam conference. Europe lay in ruins. Britain had passed on the torch of global hegemony to the U.S. by tacitly acquiescing to the decolonization of its Empire when Churchill and Roosevelt agreed terms of the Atlantic Charter for the post-war new world order in 1941. So from its start NATO was very much an American driven endeavor. American money with the Marshall plan was propping up western European economies and its military might was forming the bulk of their defensive capabilities. The lopsided nature of this dynamic has informed how tensions have persisted and recently erupted in the Alliance. During the Cold War the U.S. felt obligated to shoulder the costs of underwriting Europe's security in light of the broader interests to keep the Soviet's in check. Following the fall of the Iron Curtain European complacency became a sticking point with the 'peace dividend' further exploiting American largesse. European NATO allies spent ever smaller percentages of their GDP on defense expenditure at U.S. expense. Now in a multi-polar world U.S. and European perceived threats are less aligned. This was first tested in the aftermath of September 11th when for the first time NATO elected to trigger its article 5 collective defense protocol. And since then the U.S. has sought to continue to expand the traditional theatre of operations beyond Europe's borders. No longer is Russia perceived by America as being a proximate existential threat to its interests, but rather containing Chinese expansion in the Pacific arena. Parallel to NATO a discrete 'five eyes' intelligence sharing alliance comprising the Anglo-sphere (the U.S., U.K., Canada and New Zealand) emerged. This stands at the center of the U.S. – U.K. 'special relationship'. A relevant question would be can this signals intelligence (NSA-GCHQ) partnership persist should the U.S. withdraw from NATO? Conventional thinking would have led one to believe that with Brexit the U.K. would naturally pivot towards closer U.S. relations but under Starmer the U.K. is distancing itself. European powers misrepresent the present conflict as an aggressive, rather than defensive U.S. adventure while they themselves are more likely to be at risk. In this the Starmer government resembles the Labor party led committee for nuclear disarmament in the 1980's. It opposed the Thatcher supported deployment of U.S. cruise missiles in response to the Soviet SS20's pointed at Britain's cities. The British left branded their response to Soviet strategic escalation to U.S. aggression. This time however there is for the moment no Thatcher to bring common sense into an equation dominated by emotionally driven ideologies in the face of an aggressor with definite aims. In terms of the Russian-Ukraine conflict we are reverting to the old question dating back to the Napoleonic war era: to what extent is London happy with the European nations fighting it out alone for dominance of the continent. Britain was never willing to accept a single power in control. Many variables will dictate what kind of world emerges from the current conflicts in Ukraine and Iran. How will power be extracted from potential gains? What will be the strategic impact of this? What is sure, in the age of Trump this pattern of reliance on U.S. muscle is becoming quickly exhausted. Dating back to the Roman Empire, a factor in the decline of major powers has always been astronomical military spending, a budgetary demand that the U.S. under Trump is no longer willing to shoulder alone. (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).