Saturday - November 1, 2008

Oldest Hebrew Text Discovered at King David's Border Fortress

by Gil Ronen

(IsraelNN.com) Archaeologists have discovered what they say is the oldest Hebrew text ever found, at a site they believe was King David's front line fortress in the war against the people of Pleshet, also known as the Philistines. The site overlooks the Elah Valley, where the young David slew Goliath, the Philistine giant, with a well-aimed shot from a sling.

The text is written in ink on a pottery shard. It is made up of five lines of text in Proto-Canaanite characters separated by lines. The discovery, by archaeologists Prof. Yossi Garfinkel and Sa'ar Ganor of Hebrew University, is being hailed as one of the most important finds in Israel since the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Carbon-14 dates to King David
The writing on the shard seems to be a letter sent from one person to another and archaeologists have still not deciphered it completely. Preliminary analysis shows that it contains the words "king" (melech), "judge" (shofet), and "eved" (slave), but the terms seem to be parts of names, as in "Achimelech" or "Evedel" (lit. "King's brother," "Servant of God").

Carbon-14 dating as well as chemical analysis of the pottery found at the site shows conclusively that it dates from between 1,000 and 975 B.C. – the time of King David's reign. David – who wrote the Psalms, unified the tribes of Israel and made Jerusalem the capital of the Israeli nation – is considered to be Israel's greatest King, whose reign ushered in the period in which the First Temple was built.

The writing therefore predates the Dead Sea Scrolls by about 1,000 years.

'David's ruins'
The site where the shard was found is known as Khirbet Kheyafa, but Rabbi Barnea Selavan of the Foundation Stone organization says that "the local Bedouins refer to it as… are you sitting down?... Khirbet Daudi." The word khirbeh in Arabic refers to a ruin and Daudi is Arabic for David.

Also known as the Ela Fortress because of its location at the Elah Valley near Beit Shemesh, archaeologists believe the fortress controlled a strategic point overlooking the main route connecting Pleshet and the Judean lowland with the mountainous region and the central cities of Jerusalem and Hevron.

The ancient point of settlement covers more than four acres and is surrounded by a 700 meter long wall. Archaeologists believe that 200,000 tons of rock were mined in order to build it. The wall contains a massive and ornate gate built from hewn rock.

Stoned in the head
According to Selavan, there was some debate among archeologists as to whether the fortress was the Jewish front line against the Philistines or the opposite – the Philistines' front line against the Jews. However, there is now widespread agreement that the site was Jewish: there are no pig bones and chemical analysis (petrography) of the ceramics found there shows that the structure was Jewish, not the Philistine's.

The Elah Valley is the site at which Jewish and Philistine armies faced each other in one of the most glorious battles ever: the fateful victory in which David killed Goliath with a stone to the forehead. The Bible describes the location (in 1 Samuel, 17:2-3) thus:

And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines.

And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.

 

The digs at the spot have been underwritten by the Berman Center Biblical Archeology Hebrew University, the Brennan Foundation and Corner Stone, which is turning the site into an educational attraction and invites the public to participate in the digs.

 

Revelation 20:10-15

10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

KJV

 

Wednesday - November 5, 2008

OU Calls for Civil Discourse

by Hillel Fendel

(IsraelNN.com) The Orthodox Union (OU) has prepared eight resolutions for its biannual Convention in Jerusalem this autumn. These include calls to avoid slandering the Jews of Judea and Samaria, cautious support for cooperation with Evangelicals, and measures to ease the financial crisis.

Other resolutions deal with the centrality of Jerusalem, Jewish education, the stringent conditions under which a Palestinian government would be recognized, green initiatives, and Iran.

The resolutions are expected to be approved at the upcoming OU Convention in Jerusalem, scheduled for Nov. 26-30 of this year.

Civil Discourse
One resolution calls for "civil discourse" in the public debate over critical issues, and specifically states that the OU will "speak out against efforts to slander all the inhabitants of Yehuda and Shomron because of the inappropriate language and actions of a small minority."

The resolution appears to be tailor-designed as a response to the words of outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and other government ministers following the destruction of the Federman/Tor family farm last week. After two incensed residents cursed the soldiers who perpetrated the middle-of-the-night destruction and eviction of the families, including small children, Olmert said, "We are sick of all this violence, verbal violence that brings to physical violence... I expect to hear from the Defense Minister and Justice Minister what is to be done against these people..."

Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann said, "I am disgusted by the incitement expressed by extremist elements in the territories against IDF soldiers and security forces. We will act firmly to uproot this phenomenon. I call on the Attorney General and Israel Police to use all necessary means to deal with this." Defense Minister Ehud Barak said, "I want to emphasize the gravity of the words and actions of the extreme right-wing in the territories. I am of the opinion that the punishments in this matter are too soft, and the law enforcment and legal bodies must [rectify this]." 

Barak later said that measures such as administrative dention - arrest and detention without charges being filed - should be used against Jews in Judea and Samaria more widely than has been done until now.

Jerusalem - Center of Jewish People
The OU also had something to say about Jerusalem, in light of the negotiations with the Palestinian Authority: "Yerushalayim must forever remain the spiritual, cultural and political center of the Jewish people and the State of Israel, and the OU is mandated to undertake all efforts that are necessary to secure and maintain Yerushalayim as the eternal and undivided capital of the State of Israel. The OU is further mandated to oppose any proposal or plan to relinquish any part of Yerushalayim to any foreign authority."

Evangelicals: Respect and Suspect Them
Regarding the 60 million Evangelical Christians in the United States, the OU's message was complex. It "gratefully acknowledges the relationship we have forged with many Evangelical Christian leaders, institutions and people in support of many values and interests we share... [M]any leading Evangelical Christians and their communities have vigorously supported religious liberty and rights of conscience for people of many varied faiths, and have joined us in promoting a proper understanding of the First Amendment which insists upon neutrality toward religion in government programs... [W]e appreciate the Evangelical community’s support of the State of Israel with a united undivided Jerusalem as its capital..."

On the other hand, "The Orthodox Union is acutely aware of the desire of Evangelical Christians to spread their religion to Jews as a matter of faith. We remain vigilant to the dangers this presents to Jewish continuity and will be forthright in sharing our concerns in this area with other groups when this issue arises."

PA and Ecology
The OU conditions U.S. and Israel financial support or diplomatic recognition to a Palestinian government on the following: The PA must explicitly recognize Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state, renounce violence, agree to honor all past agreements with Israel, and concretely demonstrate its capacity to dismantle terrorist infrastructures and eliminate educational programs which incite hostility to Israelis and Jews.

The OU also speaks out ecologically, encouraging "responsible environmental behavior while being mindful of limited communal financial resources," such as recycling and paper reduction. The OU also resolves to "encourage and support appropriate government efforts to decrease our dependence on foreign oil."

 

Ezekiel 43:7

7 And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places.

KJV

Matthew 18:3

3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

KJV

 

 

Thursday - November 13, 2008

Rice may submit ‘summation’ on Mideast peace talks to Obama
 

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will likely present the incoming Obama administration with a summation of where Israeli-Palestinian peace talks stand and outlining her own parameters for resolving the long-simmering conflict, diplomatic officials in Jerusalem said on Tuesday. Rice is scheduled to arrive on Thursday for the 24th time as secretary of state, and then go to Sharm e-Sheikh on Sunday for a meeting of the Middle East Quartet. At that meeting, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Palestinian Authority negotiator Ahmed Qurei are expected to brief the Quartet representatives on where the negotiations currently stand. According to assessments in Jerusalem, Rice realizes that Israel and the Palestinians will not be able to fulfill her goal of issuing a joint document codifying their work, so she will listen to the parties and draft a summary herself.
 

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Obama aides deny holding secret meeting with Hamas

Islamist faction insists 'good relations' ongoing with US president-elect

Aides to US President-elect Barack Obama on Tuesday denied a report by Arab sources which claimed that a secret meeting was held in the Gaza Strip between Hamas and members of Obama's advisory team prior to the US general elections last week.

"This assertion is just plain false," Obama's senior foreign policy adviser Denis McDonough told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.

The denial came after Hamas official Ahmed Yousef calimed Obama's advisors held a secret meeting with Hamas leaders in the lead up to the US presidential elections.

"We first made contact with them on the Internet, and later met with some of them in Gaza, but they advised us not to come out with any statements, as they may have a negative effect on his election campaign and be used by Republican candidate John McCain (to attack Obama)," said Yousef, a political advisor to Hamas leader in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh.

Yousef went on to tell the Arab news agency Al-Hayat that Hamas has had ongoing contact with the Obama camp since the election and that they maintained "good relations." He later added that he had befriended several of Obama's aides while living in the US.

The reports follow remarks by Hamas head Khaled Mashaal in a Sky News interview on Saturday that he is willing to hold talks with Obama, and that he is challenging the newly elected leader to follow through on past statements indicating a willingness to sit down with America's chief adversaries on the world stage.

While campaigning for the White House, Obama said that he would only talk with Hamas if they first renounced terrorism and recognized Israel's right to exist. He also said that Hamas must abide by all past agreements that were made between Israel and the Palestinians.
 

John 1:10-13

10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

KJV

 

 

Monday - November 17, 2008

Obama advised to engage rather than threaten Tehran
'Open the door to direct, unconditional negotiations'

In preparation for taking office in January, US President-elect Barack Obama is being advised by former American diplomats who believe direct talks are a better way to dismantle the Iranian nuclear threat than increased economic or military pressure.  Read More
 

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Gilad: Israel cannot reconcile itself with nuclear Iran

Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amos Gilad, the head of the Israeli Defense Ministry's Diplomatic-Security Bureau, made clear this week that Israel will not tolerate a nuclear Iran in an unusually frank interview with The Jerusalem Post. For now, Israel is backing diplomatic and economic efforts to thwart the Iranians, Gilad added, but it doubts these will work and it is keeping all options open. Some senior figures in the defense ministry have indicated in private forums that Israel might have to accept a nuclear Iran. But Gilad insisted that the main assessment in the defense establishment was that Israel could not be reconciled to a nuclear Iran, since it would constitute an existential threat. "The Iranians are determined to obtain nuclear weaponry," said Gilad. "Iran is controlled by an ideology and a regime that has set itself the goal to be rid of Israel." He added that any dialogue launched by US President-elect Barack Obama with Tehran “can slow processes, but cannot halt them." As for economic pressure, that might work if Iran were facing "total isolation," he said. "But that's not happening."

Psalms 32:1-2

32 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.

2 Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

KJV

Psalms 85:1-4

85 Lord , thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob.

2 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.

3 Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.

4 Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.

KJV

 

 

Tuesday - November 18, 2008

Peres Says Peace Is Made by Closing the Eyes

by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu

(IsraelNN.com) President Shimon Peres told Diaspora Jewish leaders Monday, "You have to close your eyes" to make peace. He also reasoned that a peace agreement with the Palestinian Authority will encourage Sunni Muslims against Ahmadinejad.

Speaking at the annual General Assembly of the United Jewish Committees, he said that "making peace is a little bit like marriage [and] you have to close your eyes and accept what is possible to accept." His audience laughed and applauded.

He also explained his reasoning why surrendering Judea and Samaria to the PA and establishing a new Arab state in their place would have a domino effect on peace in the Middle East.
 
Iran is the only regional country that wants to control the Middle East, President Peres stated. He reasoned that a peace pact with the PA would show Sunni Muslims it does not have to accept Shi'ite dominance by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's faction.

He wants "to run the Middle East, in the name of religion, the octogenarian president continued." The Persians in Iran are, all told, 35 million people. The Iranians are 70 million, half of them minorities, and half are Persians. And it is the Persians who are the producers of the ayatollahs and the fanatic people. They want to control 350 million people [of the Middle East], 90 percent of whom are Sunni."

 

Revelation 20:11-15

11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

KJV

 

Monday - November 24, 2008

US says report bolsters suspicions of covert Syrian nuke program

Uranium traces not linked to Israeli ordnance

 

The United States said on Friday the recent UN report on an alleged Syrian nuclear site at al-Kibar had hardened suspicions that Syria was building a covert reactor there.

The International Atomic Energy Agency report said that a Syrian complex allegedly bombed by Israel in September 2007 bore multiple features resembling those of a reactor and UN inspectors had found a significant number of uranium traces at the site. The findings, based on analysis of satellite pictures and soil and water samples taken at the site last June, were not enough to conclude a reactor was there, the IAEA said.

But senior UN officials familiar with the report said the traces were not from depleted uranium, a hardening agent which Syria had suggested was used in the Israeli munitions.

Syria has not heeded requests for documentation to back up denials of secret nuclear activity or the IAEA’s repeated requests for visits to three other sites seen as harboring possible evidence linked to Israel's target. All four sites were landscaped to change their appearance and equipment removed - as well as all rubble from the bombed site - after the IAEA asked Syria for access, the report said.

"The report reinforces the assessment of my government that Syria was secretly building a nuclear reactor in its eastern desert and thereby violating its IAEA (non-proliferation) safeguards obligations," said Gregory Schulte, U.S. ambassador to the UN nuclear monitor. "We hope that [Syria] will not adopt the tactics of hindrance and unhelpfulness that Tehran has so finely honed and that remain so evident in the (IAEA's) latest report," he added.

A separate agency report on Wednesday said Iran was still stonewalling an IAEA probe into alleged atomic bomb research by Tehran.
 

 

1 Timothy 1:15-16

15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

16 Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.

KJV

Matthew 9:12-13

12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.

13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

KJV

Mark 2:17

17 When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

KJV

Romans 5:8-10

8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

KJV