TSIYON NEWS - Israeli War Interview
Tsiyon Messianic Radio Newsletter - Vol 19.43 - 08/28/6024 TAM - 10/31/2024 AD
From Eliyahu
War from the north has been a constant threat against Israel, for the duration of the State of Israel in modern times. However, this is nothing new. In ancient times this was also the case. Why? Because there is a spiritual battle connected with the place that has spanned the ages until now.
The mountainous area known to Israel as the Golan, roughly equivalent to ancient Bashan, rises up east and north of the Sea of Galilee. At its northern extremity, which is also the northernmost extremity of the modern State of Israel, is Mount Hermon, the highest point in Israel.
The known history of this mountainous area stretches back before the Flood of Noah. According to the Book of Enoch, a book quoted in the NT, Mount Hermon was the place where the angels that rebelled against God materialized in human-like form and entered into a pact together against God. Their plan: Take women for themselves to corrupt the image of God in humanity by producing hybrid offspring in the earth. The Book of Genesis also takes note of this, saying:
"It happened, when men began to multiply on the surface of the ground, and daughters were born to them, that God's sons saw that men's daughters were beautiful, and they took for themselves women of all that they chose. ..The Nephilim were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when God's sons came in to men's daughters. They bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown." (Genesis 6:1-4)
This crime against nature had the effect the 'gods' had intended, so that, in time, virtually all of humanity was corrupted in body and soul.
"YHWH saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. YHWH was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him in his heart." (Genesis 6:5-6)
YHWH had preserved one righteous line in the earth, the line of Noah. Through Noah's line YHWH was able to preserve mankind in the earth when He cleansed the earth by means of the Global Flood. After the Flood mankind began to multiply in the earth once again. They collected together in the land of Shinar, where they grew into 70 tribal nations, united as one in rebellion against the Creator. There, at Babel, they re-established their pact with the demon gods, while turning their backs on the True God who created them.
Having been rejected by all the nations, YHWH determined to raise up one nation for Himself - the nation of Israel. His vessel for starting that work was Abraham. YHWH made a covenant with Abraham and his seed forever. A land grant went with that which includes the whole land of Canaan, and even beyond. It took several centuries to go from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to an entire nation, but in time, at Mount Sinai, YHWH made an everlasting covenant with Israel to be His nation. It was their job to go in and take the Land YHWH had given them. The first enemies they dispossessed were in the area east of the Jordan. This included Bashan, all the way to Mount Hermon. Not surprisingly, in this area they encountered Nephilim giants, offspring of demons, then called Rephaim. Moses writes:
"Then we turned, and went up the way to Bashan: ..So YHWH our God delivered into our hand Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people: and we struck him until none was left to him remaining. We took all his cities at that time; there was not a city which we didn't take from them; sixty cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. All these were cities fortified with high walls, gates, and bars; besides the unwalled towns a great many. ..(For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the Rephaim; behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron; isn't it in Rabbah of the children of Ammon? nine cubits was its length, and four cubits its breadth, after the cubit of a man.)" (Deuteronomy 3:1-5,11)
Og, the king of Bashan, was of the Rephaim and slept in a bed of almost 14 feet in length! One might think from this that he was an exception, as if he were the only one of the Rephaim there. However, this verse seems to be saying Og's entire kingdom was made up of Rephaim:
"All the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edrei (the same was left of the remnant of the Rephaim); for Moses attacked these, and drove them out." (Joshua 13:12)
This was just the start of Israel's wars against Rephaim giants from this area.
It appears that after being driven out of Bashan by Israel, these Rephaim giants were scattered throughout the region, eventually finding shelter with the Philistines. It was not until around 1000 BC, under David's leadership, that the giants were finally destroyed out of the Land. (1 Samuel 17:4, 2 Samuel 21:10-17, 1 Chronicles 20:4-8)
The end of the giants was not the end of the northern threat, however. All of Israel's worst enemies seemed to attack Israel from the north. Assyria and later Babylon, both came down upon Israel from the north, with devastating results. Later, both the Greeks and the Romans came down upon Israel from the north.
Apparently, the demon gods had felt an affinity with the territory in the vicinity of Mount Hermon, where they had first come down to take over the world. Baal was the "Lord of the Mountain" of Mount Hermon with high places devoted to the demons "under every tree and on every high hill." Bible history is replete with accounts of the disgusting evil practices of the Baal worshippers who inhabited the entire area of Bashan and Canaan. These included sexual perversions of all kinds, and even child sacrifice. Bashan and Mount Hermon still contain the remains of cultic high places and temples that were used by the demon gods to spawn their demented offspring.
In Yeshua's day the Land was filled with Greek and Roman temples of the false gods. Of special note here was the Sanctuary of Pan at Banias, located at the base of Mount Hermon. "The Gates of Hades" were located there, along with various temples and shrines. There were many opportunities there for worshippers to invite demonic spirits in, to inhabit them. These demonic spirits, by the way, are the spirits of Nephilim whose fleshly bodies died in the Flood, but whose spirits continued on, with no natural dwelling place to return to. To gain back some physical capability they prefer to inhabit people, but sometimes inhabit animals, even pigs. Those who host them are controlled by them, and experience the torments of their twisted captors.
Sadly, many Judeans of Yeshua's day partook of the pagan rites of Banias, and were subsequently demonized, so in need of deliverance. The Gospels reveal that setting those wretched souls free was a prominent part of Yeshua's ministry. It still is.
In modern times Israel has faced assault from the north on multiple occasions. This is actually just a continuation of the age-old war that began there, in the north. Why does this keep happening? Some of it is strategic. However, the wars against Israel, on the plane of deeper motive, spring from envy. This is revealed by this Psalm:
"Mountain of the gods is the mountain of Bashan [Mount Hermon]; A mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan. Why do you look with envy, O mountain with many peaks, At the mountain [Tsiyon] which God has desired for His abode? Surely YHWH will dwell there forever." (Psalms 68:15-16)
This passage poetically speaks of the envy of the false gods who came down upon Hermon (and the envy of their followers). That is, their envy of Mount Tsiyon as representing the place of the favor of YHWH. Thus, the answer to that envy is 'surely YHWH will dwell with Tsiyon forever'.
In this Northern War, as with all others Israel has fought and will fight, Israel is battling envious people who want to take away that which YHWH has bestowed upon His chosen people - upon Israel. Those enemies never rest from their murderous envy of Israel. No treaty will satisfy them. No agreement can be made with them that will stick. This is a spiritual war, and YHWH of armies continues to fight for His people, and will do so, until Messiah comes to bring an end to the age-old war forever.
Over the past few years, Hezbollah Islamic terrorists, backed by Iran, have installed hundreds of thousands of missile installations in highlands of Lebanon, trained on Israel. UN Security Council Resolution 1701 ended the Second Lebanon War in 2006. It barred Hezbollah from maintaining a military presence south of the Litani River, which is located 18 miles north of the Israel-Lebanon border. Hezbollah has blatantly violated that resolution and has built an extensive system of underground tunnels, including command centers and arsenals, right up to Israel's northern border. These likely extend underground under Israel itself. Hezbollah launches attacks on Israel using this extensive tunnel system. Not only that, but since October 8, 2023 Hezbollah has been launching missiles into Israel every day!
Some 80,000 residents of Israeli communities in the north have been evacuated and are temporarily staying in hotels and other facilities. Clearly, Israel has had to act to deal with this situation, so has been fighting Hezbollah very effectively. Meanwhile, some other residents of Israel have chosen to remain in place, including the Druze villages on Mount Hermon.
Tonight's live-stream features an interview with a resident of one of the Druze villages living near Israel's northern border on Mount Hermon. I'm talking about our archaeologist friend, Tom Winder. He will enlighten us on what the northern war looks like up close. This live stream will begin at Tsiyon.Net at 8 PM, Central. Everyone who loves Israel will find this of interest.
Eliyahu
Tsiyon.Org
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