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Israeli and French researchers to excavate ancient site of Kiryat Ye’arim, outside Jerusalem, one of the few unstudied biblical tels One of the few remaining unstudied major biblical sites, where according to the Bible the Ark of the Covenant was kept for two decades, will be excavated by archaeologists this summer for the first time. Organizers hope the anticipated study of Kiryat Ye’arim (also transliterated as Kiriath Jearim) will shed light on the site’s significance during the Iron Age, the period associated with the biblical account of King David. Kiryat Ye’arim is mentioned over a dozen times in the Bible...

In dramatic vote, UNESCO Jerusalem resolution passes with slim support Knesset Speaker asks Vatican to join battle against UNESCO’s denial of history Israeli Deputy Minister for Regional Cooperation Ayoub Kara felt the pontiff was sending a direct message to UNESCO. Pope Francis with Ayoub Kara at the Vatican on October 26, 2016. (photo credit:AYOUB KARA) God promised the Holy Land to the people of Israel, Pope Francis said during a public address at the Vatican in Rome on Wednesday in a speech about migration. “The people of Israel, who from Egypt, where they were enslaved, walked through the desert...

For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?(Deuteronomy 4:7-8)The story of Israel’s creation is told in the book of Genesis, in fact it comprises four fifths of the Genesis record. Consider this, Genesis is the primal book. When God wanted to communicate with the world He chose to make a book, or a set...

Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts,...

Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.(Romans 9:4-5)One of the things which is unique about Israel is that the nation has been given specific covenants, (legal agreements) between God and Israel, most of which are unconditional and one of which is conditional. These covenants are given to Israel, because of God’s purpose to use the chosen people,...

It seems that every year a new children’s story Bible comes out. The captivating artwork often makes the biblical stories come alive. There is one picture in a particular story Bi ble our family has that my two-and-a-half-year-old, Elijah, loves more than others. It is a picture of a flame coming down on the altar the prophet Elijah built for God. There was a time when my son refused to go to bed until he saw this picture. Every night he would say: “Fire! Fire! Show me the fire.”While the Israelites did not have children’s story Bibles filled with artwork,...

Since October 2014, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has regularly referred to the concept of a "Mastermind" (ust akil, "supra-intellect," in Turkish) that, he says, is plotting against Turkey. This concept has been applauded by the Islamist pro-AKP media. Erdogan's December 12, 2014 speech, which focused on this "mastermind" concept, inspired the production of a two-hour "documentary" by one of the leading Turkish television channels, the pro-AKP A Haber. The film, titled "The Mastermind," first aired on March 15, 2015 and has been broadcast repeatedly since then; in addition, the Turkish Islamist pro-AKP media are circulating the film on their...

Former Mossad chief, British-born Efraim Halevy, has released an interview to Israeli media asking Israel to commit suicide and withdraw to the pre-1967 "Auschwitz borders". He also attacked Naftali Bennett's plan for an arrangement with the Arabs. Halevy looks like one of the figures created by Peter Simple, the Daily Telegraph's cartoonist. Or like Mrs Dutt-Pauker, who in the '60s symbolized "the Hampstead liberal". Dutt-Pauker is a rich heiress living in Hampstead, in a villa known as "Marxmount House", where she collects a pair of false teeth belonging to Communist leader Bukharin, Ming vases and writings of Stalin. Mrs Dutt-Pauker...

“Now the LORD had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed’” (Gen. 12:1–3, all Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version.). The entire remainder of the Bible after these verses can be...

“I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the LORD.” — Hosea 2:19-20 At times, it is difficult to read through portions of the Hebrew Bible (what Christians call the Old Testament) — in particular, the words of the prophets. Repeatedly, men like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, and others conveyed messages of warning, judgment, and dire consequences if God’s people did not turn from their sinful ways and obey Him. At times, such messages of judgment can obscure the...

Some months ago I was down to take a wedding on a Saturday. The couple had been prepared by the deacon. The groom was from a nominally Catholic family, the girl was unbaptized. So the wedding party turned up for the rehearsal on the Friday and, as usual, people were in high spirits, but in this case there was some rolling of eyes and poor behavior from some of the non Catholics. I was told by one of the assistants that they were mocking the Catholic Church and making light of what was going on. So, as I conducted the...

A senior cleric in the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood has declared that ordinary Egyptians are obligated to kill 'Zionists' whom they encounter. According to Arutz Sheva Arab affairs expert Dalit Halevy, the pronouncement is part of a general wave of incitement that directly endangers Israelis who are currently in Egypt. This follows Muslim Brotherhood calls to end the peace treaty with Egypt and threats to kill Israel's ambassador if he does not leave the country. Although there are many benefits for Egypt if it continues its relations with Israel, not the least of which is continued American aid, that is not...

Representatives of the Quartet for Middle East peace convened Monday night at the State Department in Washington, D.C. in an attempt to compare notes and find a way to bring the Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiation table.

On September 17, 1787, the United States Constitution was adopted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by representatives of the people. It was established upon the blood of many men and women who gave their lives so America would stand on its own laws with authority. Its creation came almost 11 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. In the first two sentences of the Declaration of Independence, the founders acknowledged that the Creator of all, God, was where the authority inhered to form the United States Constitution. Since that time many a citizen has pledged their...

Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary prof David Turner discussed the literal hermeneutic issue that traditionally is seen as a defining difference between covenant theology and dispensationalism. He noted, however, that its actual use in specific textual situations was determined by the presuppositions of the exegete, not by an arbitrarily chosen hermeneutical system. So we see an emerging awareness that dispensational and covenant theologies differ because of deep rooted presuppositions. The trick is to define where they are and what they are. In the following sections I will attempt to contrast the "classical" forms of each system to discover their different senses...

Dear FReepers, Twice in the last two tumultuous years, we have witnessed the true nature of Imam Hussein Obama. Over the weekend, the President stumped for flailing Democrat leaders in stalwart bastions where the re-election of left-wig nuts has been a sure thing. That was certainly true before the advent of this bizare, one of a kind politition. Photos released by the White House show an angry, nearly out of control President whose grip on reality shows signs of deterioration. Before we evaluate these photos out of context, I would like to remind all of you just how extreme Imam...

I recently read a posting on another blog by a woman who had some trepidation with the thought of marriage. It’s a meaty topic to be sure, and one I’d not be able to easily or quickly delve into, but I think it’s worth mentioning here at least a little. Certainly not everyone who gets married is a Christian, and statistics and studies have shown that divorce rates are astronomically high – specifically in the U.S. – irrespective of religious belief or non-belief. That said, while I try to be even-handed in most of my approaches, this, like many of...

If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit...

The Temporary Sinai Covenant Understanding the purpose and temporary nature of the covenant that God made with ancient Israel at Mt. Sinai is critical for comprehending the New Testament scriptures correctly. The contents of this covenant became, in effect, Israel's national constitution. With God as its King, Israel became a theocratic state—essentially a temporary, earthly kingdom of God. Its people accepted all the covenantal conditions God laid out for them, saying, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do" (Exodus 19:8). Amid the thunder, lightning, smoke and fire atop Mt. Sinai, God spoke the Ten Commandments to the entire...

          OUR COVENANT WITH GOD Abram accepted the covenant God offered him, "I Am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers." Abram fell face-down, and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: you will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram: your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations." (Genesis 17:1-5). Like Abraham, we also have a covenant with God;...