MASADA WILL NOT HAPPEN AGAIN

Do you really understand what is happening in the Israel-Palestinian war? and where it is leading?

What is the source of Israel’s resilience? And what does prophecy say about Israel's present - and its future?

Most observers today are viewing Hamas terrorism and Israeli response in the context of the here and now. Yes, many wonder where all of this is leading, but do they realize there is something bigger at work?

Do they realize that Bible prophecy is being fulfilled right before their eyes?

About 2500 years ago the biblical prophet Zechariah wrote of events involving Judah (the Jews) and Jerusalem. These prophecies, found in the twelfth and fourteenth chapters of his prophetic account, are specific and easy to understand. Their accuracy attests to the fact that God alone inspired them, and the details leave no doubt that they are for our time - now and the days just ahead.

When Hamas terrorists invaded the state of Israel last October, I could not help to think of Masada - the fortress where, according to the ancient historian Josephus, nearly a thousand Jewish patriots died under Roman assault in 73 AD.

The Hamas terrorists - striking while many in Israel were observing Shemini Atzeret, the annual Holy Day known as the Last Great Day - killed civilians, beheaded babies and children, raped women, and took hostages to use as bargaining chips and human shields. They even used victims' cell phones to send execution videos back to contacts and families. Much of the world was shocked by such barbarity. But, sadly, too many around the globe, fascinated with death, cheered and protested on behalf of the terrorists, just as they had on 9/11.

Masada - This ancient fortress looms approximately 430 meters above the Dead Sea on the edge of the Judean desert. It served as a summer palace for Herod, complete with a swimming pool and sauna. Despite its location, an ingenious series of canals and cisterns reportedly could store enough water from a single day's rain to sustain a thousand residents for more than two years. As impressive as Masada once was, what brings it into focus today is its first-century history. Disaster came upon the Jews when they revolted against their Roman overlords in 66 AD. Four years later, Jerusalem fell, just as Jesus had foretold (Matthew 24:1-2). The siege of Jerusalem was brutal - again, as Jesus had foretold (Matthew 23:37-39) - and the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus recorded some of the details. Zealots took to Masada to make a last stand - the only way to the top of the plateau was by way of a long, snaking trail, which could easily be defended. You can still see this well-defined trail today, along with the remains of eight stone-walled camps surrounding the fortress. There was no easy way to attack the holdouts who sat comfortably atop the plateau, but the determined Romans embarked on an ambitious building project. They built a ramp of dirt and gravel up to the top of the western side - a time-weathered structure that remains to this day. Out numbered 15 to one, once the Jews realized the day of doom was upon them, they chose to kill one another (Jewish law forbidding suicide) rather than have their wives abused, their children enslaved, and the men defeated in battle. Josephus records what happened from the testimony of the very few women and children who survived. He also records the main point of an impassioned speech with which the leader of the enclave encouraged his countrymen. 'Let our wives die before they are abused, and our children before they have tasted of slavery; and after we have slain them, let us bestow that glorious benefit upon one another mutually, and preserve ourselves in freedom, as an excellent funeral monument for us. But first let us destroy our money and the fortress by fire; for I am well assured that this will be a great grief to the Romans, that they shall not be able to seize upon our bodies, and shall fail of our wealth also; and let us spare nothing but our provisions; for they will be a testimony when we are dead that we were not subdued for want of necessaries; but that, according to our original resolution, we have preferred death before slavery'. Masada is a monument in and a symbol for Israel. Modern Israeli soldiers swear "Masada shall not fall again" and make night-time pilgrimages to the site as part of their initiation into the military. American presidents have consistently declared their support; shortly after the Hamas attacks, President Biden plainly stated on October 10, "Let there be no doubt: The United States has Israel's back." President George W. Bush had even declared U.S. support in terms invoking Masada; in a May 2008 address to Israel’s Knesset, he proclaimed, "Citizens of Israel: Masada shall never fall again, and America will be at your side."

I want to point out at this stage that you must not miss the significance of this, today's Israelis will not accept defeat as the zealots of Masada did nearly two millennia ago. They will take their enemies with them. Few commentators dare acknowledge that Israel has the weapons, nuclear and otherwise, to do just that. As Israelis today face a threat to their survival from Iran, Iran's proxies, and other Arab and Islamic nations, no one should doubt their drive for survival - never shall Masada fall again. (to be continued)