Terrorism is on the rise again in Israel. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) recently uncovered three attack tunnels leading from Lebanon into Israel. Hezbollah boasts that its rockets can reach all of Israel. In November, Hamas engaged Israel with hundreds of rockets fired from Gaza in just two days.
In the past few weeks, terrorists stabbed an IDF soldier and shot and killed two soldiers in the West Bank. Terrorists also sprayed bullets into a crowd of civilians waiting at a bus stop. The drive-by attack seriously injured a pregnant woman along with six others. While the young mother fought for her life, doctors delivered her baby boy nine weeks premature. He hung on for only a few days before he died.
These are challenging questions to be sure, and they seem only to lead to more: How did this conflict start, and when did the struggle begin? Who are Israel’s leading enemies, and why do they despise the tiny Jewish state so much?
The Middle East conflict is complicated, but it’s critical to be able to sort the facts from misinformation and propaganda. Many people are subjected to false conceptions about the strife in the Middle East, embracing – often passionately – uninformed views of Israel and the Palestinians.
Unfounded and misguided animosity toward Israel contributes to anti-Semitism throughout the world, and recent years have shown a dramatic increase. It’s vital to know the truth.
Jonathan Bernis’ new book, A Lasting Peace, provides an easy-to-understand overview of the Middle East conflict. It outlines Israel’s biblical and modern history to give you the full picture of how the seemingly insurmountable impasse in the Middle East today came to be.
In A Lasting Peace, you’ll discover answers to these and many more of your questions:
A Lasting Peace pulls back the curtain of confusion and misinformation to reveal the facts about the Middle East conflict. Understanding this cauldron of contention is more important now than ever. As anti-Israel ideologies sprout and grow on college campuses and anti-Semitic motives put Jewish people at risk around the world, we must do all we can to combat the misunderstandings that give rise to them. We start by gaining a clear understanding of the truth.
There are hundreds of Messianic prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures that foretell specific information about God’s promised Messiah. Mathematician Peter Stoner looked at the statistical probability of one man fulfilling even a handful of them.
In his book, Science Speaks, Stoner revealed that the chance any one man might fulfill just eight of those Messianic prophecies in the Old Covenant is one in one hundred quadrillion – one in 10 to the 17th power, or one in 100,000,000,000,000,000.
Stoner did the same calculations for the fulfillment of 48 prophetic passages about the Messiah. The odds of one man fulfilling all 48 are 1 in 10 to the157th power. That’s the numeral one followed by 157 zeroes!
The Scriptures speak of two distinct appearances of the Messiah: One in which He comes as a humble servant destined to suffer and die for His people, and one in which He returns as the conquering king and judge. What are the chances that one man has fulfilled the hundreds of prophecies about the Messiah’s first appearing as a suffering servant? It’s beyond comprehension how narrow they are.
Yet one man has. His name is Yeshua (Jesus).
Perhaps a better question is: What is the probability that Yeshua of Nazareth is not the Messiah?
Below is a sampling of Messianic prophecies pertaining to the Messiah’s lineage and birth. They include New Covenant Scripture references showing how Yeshua fulfilled them. We’ll examine additional Messianic prophecies in future blog posts, including evidence from Messiah’s life, the rejection He was foretold to experience, His suffering, and death.
Take a look, and consider the odds.
Messiah’s Lineage
Seed of Isaac
Prophecy: Genesis 17:19, Genesis 21:12
Fulfillment: Matthew 1:2–16, Luke 3:23–38
Seed of Judah
Prophecy: Genesis 49:10
Fulfillment: Luke 3:33
A rod/son out of Jesse
Prophecy: Isaiah 11:1
Fulfillment: Luke 3:23–32
Descendant of David
Prophecy: Ezekiel 34:23–24
Fulfillment: Matthew 1:1
The Messiah’s Birth
Messiah would be preceded by a forerunner who would turn many to righteousness
Prophecy: Malachi 4:5-6, Isaiah 40:3–4, Malachi 4:6
Fulfillment: Matthew 3:1–2, John 1:19–23, Luke 3:7-22
Messiah would be born of a young maiden who is a virgin
Prophecy: Isaiah 7:14, Genesis 3:15
Fulfillment: Luke 1:35, Matthew 1:18–20
Messiah would be known as “God with us”
Prophecy: Isaiah 7:14
Fulfillment: John 1:1–4, 14
Messiah would be born in Bethlehem
Prophecy: Micah 5:2
Fulfillment: Luke 2:1–7
With warmth and transparency, Jewish Voice’s own Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Bernis shares a compelling case for Jesus as Messiah and presents overwhelming evidence that can be traced to the Torah itself.
I want to begin by apologizing to all my friends, co-workers and esteemed leaders for not being there in person for such an important gathering….but due to health reasons, I was not able to make the long journey. I’ve asked our dear brother Ezra to officially represent me as well as our Jewish Voice U.S. leadership and staff.
Gerald was my dear friend and I, like all of you, feel a great sense of loss.
From the day we first met here in Addis Ababa over 14 years ago, I knew our destinies were intertwined. Gerald loved Ethiopia; he loved this land, he loved the people, he loved your unique history and culture. It was a part of him. And that love, and divine call to serve your nation and in particular, the Scattered Tribes of Israel here in this land was something I inherited from him. And I will be forever grateful to him for this legacy.
When his beloved wife Elly passed away suddenly and tragically just 3 months ago, he wrote to me to share the sad news. His email to me was a reflection of who he was:
He began by quoting Nahum 1:6: "The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in Him"
He went on to write: “In May we have been married for 55 years. The most wonderful years in my life because we shared our faith in the Lord and she was such inspiration with tremendous support for the ministry, especially in Ethiopia and with Jewish Voice. Now I know for certain she is "safe in the arms of Jesus" with no sorrow, sadness or sickness" where God wipes away every tear from our eyes”
He then closed the email: “Greetings in His wonderful Name! "His grace is sufficient in every situation", Gerald.
If Gerald were here today, he would tell us not to mourn him….for he is “safe in the arms of Yeshua”, rejoicing before the One he faithfully served throughout his life. No more sorrow, sadness, sickness or tears. For half a century he lived here, he ministered here …he belonged here…..and it is from here, in Ethiopia, where he wanted to finish his race when his time on this earth was complete.
There will never be another Gerald Gotzen. He has left a void in our lives with his departure we will always feel. He was our mentor, our co-worker, our spiritual father, our teacher, wise counselor, encourager, mediator…..and we will miss him greatly.
Yet in the midst of our sadness over his loss, Gerald would remind us….”His grace IS sufficient…in every situation.
It is with great sadness tempered with grace and hope that we share with you this report. At about 5pm Sunday, December 9, Ethiopian time, our beloved brother, Gerald Gotzen went home to be with the Lord. He was in Ethiopia returning to Addis Ababa from a meeting in Hosanna when the car he was riding in collided with a truck. It is our understanding he died on route to the hospital. His body was then transported to Addis Ababa.
Just 10 weeks ago, on September 22, his beloved wife, Elly, passed away suddenly in a fire. They were married for 55 years.
Gerald deeply loved Ethiopia and devoted more than 50 years of his life to this unique land and people. He told Jonathan Bernis, CEO of Jewish Voice, many times that he wanted to be in Ethiopia when he went to be with the Lord. Sadly, his passing was far sooner than any of us would have imagined. Gerald, born in Redhill, England, was 77 years old.
“I met Gerald in Addis Ababa back in 2004,” Jonathan recalls, “and we immediately became friends. His love for Ethiopia was contagious and, through him, I grew to love Ethiopia as well.” Gerald soon became a member of our Jewish Voice UK board and served faithfully in that role for more than a decade.
Gerald Gotzen was a world-renowned leading authority on Ethiopian Jews. He discovered the Kechene community of Beta Abraham Jewish people of Addis Ababa, the Gefat of Woliso, and the Yibir of Somaliland. For each discovery, he credits the help of a different man with whom he partnered. In 2014, together with JVMI’s Africa Director at the time, he also discovered the hidden Beta Israel remnant in Tach Gayint, Ethiopia.
Gerald made four to five trips to Ethiopia each year, spending three weeks or more on each visit. He and Elly distributed large consignments of Bibles and literature and ministered practically to the Ethiopian people. Gerald Gotzen opened many doors for JVMI in that nation, serving as an Ambassador of the Kingdom of God. He was received by presidents, prime ministers, ambassadors, patriarchs and kings and spoke into their lives.
Most importantly, Gerald was a man of faith who deeply loved the Lord with all his heart, soul and strength. Although we will all miss him greatly, he is now rejoicing in the presence of the Lord and reunited with his beloved bride and the many he helped lead to righteousness.
“Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever” (Daniel 12:3).
Persecution in Tach Gayint from JewishVoice on Vimeo.
Danny Danon, Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, responded to a newly proposed Palestinian UN resolution this past week. He said, “Israel and the United States will continue to mobilize the countries of the world into a united front against the terrorism that Hamas engages in on behalf of Iran.”
And he added, “A terrorist organization going to the UN for assistance is like a serial killer asking the police” for help.
That proposed resolution came in the form of a letter Hamas sent to United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) President Maria Fernada Spinosa on the UN’s “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People,” which was last Thursday. The letter asked for UN support of Hamas’ right to bear arms against Israel.
CNN commentator Marc Lamont Hill spoke to the UNGA on the occasion, invoking a rally cry Hamas uses to call for the destruction of Israel: “Free Palestine from the river to the sea.” The Daily Wire reported that Hill “has a long history of anti-Semitism” and cited a May 2018 Huffington Post article in which Hill “defended Palestinians’ right to use violence against Israel but claimed Palestinians truly want peace.”
Hill also wrote, “By naturalizing the idea that nation-states have a ‘right to exist,’ we undermine our ability to offer a moral critique of Israel’s (or any settler-colony’s) origin story.”
It’s encouraging that CNN fired Hill for his UNGA comments, and Hill subsequently apologized for them in an op-ed published in his hometown paper, The Philadelphia Inquirer.
However, although UNGA rejected the Hamas proposal, it did pass six resolutions biased against Israel.
If you ever needed proof of the illegitimacy of the United Nations? Today you got it. The #UNGA just failed to pass a resolution condemning terrorist org #Hamas for indiscriminately firing hundreds of rockets at civilians, each one constituting a war crime in and of itself. pic.twitter.com/Ult0ZiEvwi
— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) December 6, 2018
Those six anti-Israel resolutions passed at last week’s UNGA are listed on the UN’s website. They are non-binding but carry significant political weight. They are:
The resolution titled “Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine,” which calls for intensified efforts to conclude a final peace settlement. It blames Israel for the lack of a peace agreement and calls on Israel to comply with international law and end all acts of violence against the Palestinian people. It ignores Hamas and Hezbollah terrorism against Israel.
Danon said of the six resolutions, “It is a shame that the United Nations passes biased resolutions and devotes resources to bodies that denounce and attack Israel.” She called UN discussions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict “Israel bashing.”
The website UN Watch called them “inherently prejudiced and one-sided,” “counter-productive to the peace process,” and “ignoring terrorism against Israeli men, women and children.”
Outgoing U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said the resolutions “are biased and drive parties apart,” adding that “the cause of peace will be served when the bias against Israel ends.”
The U.S. submitted a resolution condemning Hamas “for repeatedly firing rockets into Israel and for inciting violence” against civilians. The Palestinian ambassador called it a continuation of the United States’ “attack against the Palestinian people” that he said began with recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital; cutting off funding for the Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA; and closing the Palestine Liberation Office in Washington D.C.
A Monday vote on that resolution was delayed and expected today.
Meanwhile, the UN and Egypt continue their efforts to reconcile Hamas (which rules the Gaza Strip) and Fatah (the party of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas). Senior officials of Hamas, Fatah, Egypt and the UN met last summer to devise ways to avert “an all-out military confrontation with Israel in the Gaza Strip,” The Jerusalem Post reported.
It seems the only thing the two groups can agree upon is ensuring the failure of President Trump’s efforts to negotiate peace.
While Hamas and Fatah continue to battle for control of Gaza, they are united in their war against President Trump, World Israel News (WIN)reported earlier this year, adding that, “Thwarting Trump’s peace plan has become a top priority for Hamas and Fatah. This is a mission that seems to be much more important to them than alleviating the suffering of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.”
More media outlets will call out and stand up against Israel bashing
Hamas and Fatah will join the effort to negotiate meaningful peace in the Middle East, including recognition of Israel
