GAZA

We will get back to our Genesis study soon. Today I find it hard to find the correct words to convey the message that I truly feel in my heart. However, I am going to try, please give me patience and mercy and know my heart is in the right place. I believe words do not describe what the people of Israel are really going through.

Each week as new hostages are released, I am reminded about the photos in history class of the Holocaust survivors. The media refuses to give it the justice it deserves. Israel was attacked, innocent people held captive for over a year. The spectacle that Hamas and the other terrorist perpetrate is unacceptable. However, God will have the final word.

Amos 1:6-9 “Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away its [punishment,] Because they took captive the whole captivity To deliver [them] up to Edom. 7 But I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza, Which shall devour its palaces. 8 I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, And the one who holds the scepter from Ashkelon; I will turn My hand against Ekron, And the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,” Says the Lord GOD. 9 Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Tyre, and for four, I will not turn away its [punishment,] Because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, And did not remember the covenant of brotherhood.”

Israel are still a people but the Philistines are no more. The Palestinians who are mainly Jordanian and Egyptian, are not even from the land. Yet, they too will be taken out of the land.

Zephaniah 2:4-5 “For Gaza shall be forsaken, And Ashkelon desolate; They shall drive out Ashdod at noonday, And Ekron shall be uprooted. 5 Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, The nation of the Cherethites! The word of the LORD [is] against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines: “I will destroy you; So there shall be no inhabitant.”

The land is indeed heading towards total destruction. Those who defy God’s people will eventually realize that God does keep His promises to them and to those who fight against the Jewish people. However, what is the final outcome of Gaza? I believe we need to look no further than in Zephaniah 2:6-7 “The seacoast shall be pastures, With shelters for shepherds and folds for flocks. 7 The coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; They shall feed [their] flocks there; In the houses of Ashkelon they shall lie down at evening. For the LORD their God will intervene for them, And return their captives.”

No matter what happens to Gaza in the immediate future, its final outcome will be a place of fields for sheep. It will be a peaceful pasture for the tribe of Judah. For those who do not take God’s Word seriously, let me point out that God has already brought to pass one part of this prophecy! The Philistines are no more, they are gone and replaced by an imposter of people who soon, with all hope and mercy, will be uprooted from the land and sent to their own homes of Jordan and Egypt.

Israel deserves to live in peace, this peace will not come until ultimately Jesus Christ sits on the throne of David in the eternal capital of Jerusalem. However, as Christians and followers of Messiah, we need to recognize the importance and still relevance that the Jewish people have in this human saga unfolding. Without Christ keeping His promises to the Jewish people, what hope do you and I have? The answer is simply none. We can thank the Lord that He is greater than our own understanding and has made it clear that He is working in our lives today in preparation for upcoming events foretold in His scripture. We need only open our eyes, listen with our ears, and see God declare His awesomeness to us.

Nevertheless, each hostage released is heartbreaking. A mixture of relief and anger flood the senses when I see what the Israeli’s are having to deal with. We need to pray for Israel, we need to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Keep your eyes on Jerusalem, and possibly even Gaza, as we see God doing some incredible work in the area.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming,

JL