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God Save Jerusalem!Jerusalem has known precious little peace in its long history. People call it the holy city, but does God view it that way now? What does He say about the future of this disputed capital and religious center?by Jerold W. AustFew in number and surrounded by tens of millions of Arabs, the Israelis are truly the underdog. Americans love the underdog. They love Israel because of the great odds set against it and because it has fought valiantly against great odds and has won, decisively. Israelis are a gutsy people. But that's not the only reason Americans love Israel. There's a hidden reason Americans love Israel, and both countries appear not to know this: They are brothers. Sounds strange, I know. But extensive, careful research of biblical promises, prophecies and history shows that Israel, Britain and America must be brothers, emerging from the ancient 12 tribes of Israel (Genesis 49). Our free booklet can illuminate this for you. Israel's 60th anniversary The small but mighty nation of Israel will celebrate its 60th anniversary (1948-2008) this May, rising from the ashes of persecution, relentlessly threatened by terrorists and constantly plagued by wars and threats of war. Most Christians and Jews believe that God restored the Jews to their homeland. Jerusalem is not like other notable cities of the world. It sits on a hill surrounded by other hills. No river runs near Jerusalem nor a major highway, and there is no port to access the shipping lanes. Jerusalem pipes in water from the Sea of Galilee. Yet Jerusalem (population 732,000) is considered by many to be the most important city on earth. Many view Jerusalem as the holy city. But does God view modern Jerusalem that way today? The Old Testament is filled with prophecies directly related to ancient and modern Israel. When God speaks of His chosen nation Israel, He corrects them for not remaining faithful to Him (Jeremiah 11:1-8; Hebrews 8:7-9). None of the 12 tribes (now modern nations) has remained faithful to the one true God. And God even compares unfaithful Jerusalem to Sodom and Egypt (Revelation 11:8). Jerusalem, the apple of God's eye In spite of its spiritual condition, God still views Jerusalem as the apple of His eye (Zechariah 2:8), calling those things that are not, as though they were (Romans 4:17). God will one day save Jerusalem, but before that happens, Jerusalem will experience terrible tragedies (Zechariah 14:2; Lamentations 1). Today, Jerusalem has little peace—though it wants, needs and is promised it. Ironically, three major religions lay claim to the holy city: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Not one can bring peace to this troubled city. Both the Israelis and the Palestinian National Authority call Jerusalem their capital. It has been Israel's capital since the 1967 Six-Day War. But it won't always remain under man's rule; it belongs to God. A time is coming when God will punish all who set their hand against Judah and Jerusalem: "I will make Jerusalem and Judah like an intoxicating drink to all the nearby nations that send their armies to besiege Jerusalem. On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone, a burden for the world. None of the nations who try to lift it will escape unscathed" (Zechariah 12:2-3, New Living Translation). The book of Revelation, chapters 14 and 19, speak clearly and emphatically about this time, as does Zechariah 14. No man dare touch the holy city of Jerusalem, the apple of God's eye (Zechariah 2:8), meaning that which is most dear to Him. Those who lay siege to Jerusalem and Judah will pay dearly, because God owns Jerusalem and Judah. Threaten Jerusalem and you take on Almighty God. Jerusalem's name has great meaning Paradoxically, the name Jerusalem contains the word for peace. It is directly tied to the God of the Old and New Testaments, Christ Jesus, who is also the Messiah and the Prince of Peace (Hebrews 1:2; John 1:41; Hebrews 7; Isaiah 9:6; Revelation 21). There is both a biblical and linguistic connection between the King of Salem and the city of Jerusalem. Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek, the King of Salem or peace (Genesis 14). The book of Hebrews shows that this same Melchizedek is the Savior of mankind, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 7). Former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, Dore Gold, suggests that Jerusalem goes back as far as Noah's son Shem. "But Jerusalem, according to the Midrash, already had the name Shalem, which it was given by Shem, the son of Noah. Thus Jerusalem is not only relevant to the tradition of Abraham, the Midrash concludes, but rather to all the sons of Noah—in other words, to the rest of mankind. Therefore, it suggests that God chose the name Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) as a combination of Yir'eh [meaning, 'the place which the Lord will show'] and Shalem [peace]" (The Fight for Jerusalem, Dore Gold, 2007, p. 45). Jerusalem was conquered by Joshua, King David, Nebuchadnezzar, Alexander the Great, Antiochus Epiphanes, Roman emperors, the Ottoman Turks, the Crusaders, the British and, finally, the modern Israelis. Jerusalem has known precious little peace, but it is promised permanent peace by God Almighty (Isaiah 11:1-9). God save Jerusalem! Almighty God alone can and will save Jerusalem. The holy city belongs to Him. Even its name embodies His gift of peace to all humankind. The prophet Zechariah, under Almighty God's inspiration, wrote that God would make Jerusalem like a cup of drunkenness and a very heavy stone for all that lay siege against it. This He will do through Judah (Zechariah 14:14). "And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, 'The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the LORD of hosts, their God.' In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem... "In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; the one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the Angel of the LORD before them. It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem" (Zechariah 12:5-6,8-9). Those who seek to exterminate the Jews will one day serve them, when the Jews are converted along with the rest of the tribes of Israel. The prophet Isaiah wrote that all nations who afflict Jerusalem "shall come bowing to you, and all those who despised you shall fall prostrate at the soles of your feet; and they shall call you The City of the LORD, Zion of the Holy One of Israel" (Isaiah 60:14). God owns Jerusalem. God will make Jerusalem "an eternal excellence, a joy of many generations" (Isaiah 60:15). For Jerusalem's future glory, God will provide gold for bronze and silver for iron, bronze for wood and iron for stones. "I will also make your officers peace, and your magistrates righteousness" (verse 17; compare "peace" and "righteousness" in Hebrews 7:2). Jerusalem belongs to God, not to man. It appears to have begun with man but it ends with God (Revelation 21). God's goal for Jerusalem is to fulfill its name, the place which the Lord will show His peace. This helps us to understand why God will save Jerusalem. His city will represent godly peace throughout the earth (Ezekiel 36:35-38). No man will ever bring peace to Jerusalem; he cannot. Jesus said only His peace will prevail, beginning at Jerusalem. Before His crucifixion, Jesus said this about His peace: "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John 14:27). Permanent, everlasting peace begins and ends with God, is given to humankind and returns to God. "For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it" (Isaiah 55:10-11). God will save Jerusalem as His city from where global peace shall flow throughout the earth. For a better understanding of Jerusalem's future, request our free booklet . WNP |
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