Transcript [00:01] In just one day [music] in 1948, a [00:03] nation was formed. [00:06] >> Our people returned to the land [music] [00:08] of promise. [00:10] >> And God says, "I love Zion. [music] I [00:12] desire Zion." [00:17] >> All nations, it says, will come and join [00:19] the blessings of Israel coming [music] [00:21] up. [00:23] >> God has divinely and sovereignly set up [00:26] the nation [music] of Israel and brought [00:28] us back for even greater things to come. [00:33] I am Dr. Eran Sorif. I was born and [00:36] raised in the heart of Israel, [00:37] >> [music] [00:38] >> but I never heard the gospel message [00:40] until on a journey abroad, my eyes were [00:43] opened to the Jewish Messiah. [00:46] From that point, [music] my life has [00:48] been dedicated to bringing this gospel [00:51] back to my [music] people, Israel, [00:53] equipping them to reach Israel and the [00:55] world. [00:56] Together, as Jews and Gentiles, [music] [00:59] we are one in Messiah, One for Israel. [01:21] Aliyah is a Hebrew word that means [01:24] [music] going up or ascension. [01:27] In biblical times, it referred to the [01:29] three times a year where Israelites [01:31] would ascend the hill of Jerusalem to [01:34] celebrate the appointed feasts. [music] [01:37] Today, we use aliyah in a wider sense. [01:40] It speaks of Jewish people from all over [01:42] the world returning [music] [01:44] to their ancestral homeland in Israel. [01:47] After almost [music] 2,000 years of [01:49] exile, it is a going up and a going back [01:53] to the place God gave by promise to his [01:56] people. [02:02] The Aliyah of Israel today is a modern [02:05] miracle. Against all odds, our people [02:07] came up from the graves of the Holocaust [02:10] to this very land. [02:11] In one day, a nation was born, and [02:14] Jewish people from around the world [02:16] began returning to their historic [02:19] homeland. But, is the rebirth of our [02:21] nation just a testimony of grit and good [02:24] luck, or are we part of a much greater [02:27] story? [02:29] What does modern Israel have to do with [02:31] the biblical Aliyah of Ezra and Nehemiah [02:35] over 2,400 [music] [02:37] years ago? [02:38] >> Most Israelis know quite well about the [02:40] formation of Israel from school and [02:43] their training in the IDF, but many are [02:46] unaware of the echoes of our biblical [02:48] past in our present day, and what it [02:51] means for the Jewish people. [02:54] >> In this episode, we're going to look at [02:56] what the scriptures have to say about [02:58] the rebirth of the state of Israel and [03:00] the incredible parallels hidden in our [03:02] past and present, and seek to answer the [03:04] questions: Does national Israel exist [03:07] purely by chance or a historical error, [03:10] as some claim? [03:12] Or is it by divine providence and as [03:13] part of God's plan for all mankind? [03:16] And if God has truly established our [03:18] return, what's next? [03:22] >> In Ezekiel 37, the prophet declares, [03:26] "Surely, I will take the children of [03:28] Israel from among the nations wherever [03:31] they have gone, and will gather them [03:33] from every side and bring them into [03:36] their own land." [03:39] >> One of the most famous Jewish [03:41] commentators of all times, who lived 700 [03:44] years ago, noticed a repeating trend in [03:46] scripture, and thus coined a well-known [03:49] term to describe it: The acts of the [03:51] fathers is a sign for the sons. Simply [03:54] put, God has written history together in [03:57] a way that as we look to the events of [04:00] the past, we can learn [music] of our [04:02] present and of our future. Many times in [04:05] scripture, we see past events [04:07] foreshadowing events to come, [04:10] prophesying God's deliverance and [04:12] judgment. [04:15] >> Let's start by looking back to the [04:17] timing of some key events in biblical [04:20] history during the time of the prophet [04:22] Jeremiah. [04:24] The people of Judah lost their [04:26] sovereignty as a nation when [04:28] Nebuchadnezzar came up to the land and [04:30] put King Jehoiakim and Judah under [04:33] servitude around 605 BC. [04:37] >> After a failed rebellion in 597 BC, [04:40] Nebuchadnezzar installed his own vassal [04:43] king, but peace didn't last long. The [04:46] Jewish people rebelled against Babylon. [04:49] And Jerusalem was besieged. [04:52] In 586 BC, 19 years after the first [04:56] conquest, Jerusalem was completely [04:58] destroyed. [05:00] >> Fast forward 70 years. It was Cyrus that [05:04] issued the decree to rebuild the temple [05:07] and send our people home. [05:09] Our people were once again a nation, but [05:11] only a few actually went back to [05:14] Jerusalem. While the altar was built, [05:17] very few people lived in the city since [05:19] it wasn't secure and our people were in [05:22] peril from our neighbors. [05:25] >> 100 years after Cyrus [music] made his [05:27] declaration, hope was restored and [05:30] Nehemiah was commissioned [music] by the [05:31] Persian king to rebuild the walls of [05:34] Jerusalem. [05:35] It took 52 days full of threats and [05:38] terror from Israel's enemies, but under [05:41] Nehemiah's leadership, the wall was [05:43] built [05:44] and Jerusalem was safely in Jewish [05:46] hands. [05:47] >> Now, let's take a look at our modern [05:49] era. [05:50] After Israel was established as a nation [05:53] in 1948, [05:55] the Jewish people had a sovereign state [05:57] once again. [05:59] But, Jerusalem was divided [06:01] and the old city and Western Wall were [06:03] occupied by Jordan. [06:06] 19 years later, [06:08] after the miraculous Six-Day War of [06:10] 1967, [06:12] Jerusalem was once again, after 2,000 [06:15] years, back in Jewish hands. [06:19] >> Note the parallels. First, the nation's [06:22] [music] sovereignty. [06:23] Then, Jerusalem secured. Is this all by [06:27] accident? Or has [music] God repeated [06:29] this pattern of events to show us [06:31] something important? [06:33] Now, let's explore the books of Ezra and [06:35] Nehemiah [06:36] >> [music] [06:36] >> and see if we can find even more [06:38] parallels between the Babylonian Aliyah [06:42] and the modern Aliyah of our day. [06:46] >> First, [music] let's remember the [06:48] context of the Babylonian exile. [06:51] Jerusalem was utterly [music] destroyed [06:52] and millions of lives were lost in the [06:54] conquests and exile that ravaged our [06:57] land. [06:58] Our people were scattered by our [07:00] conquerors and all hope seemed to be [07:02] lost. [07:03] But, 70 years into exile, without a war [07:06] or political alliance, a miracle [07:08] happened. [07:10] The remnant of an enslaved and conquered [07:12] people were granted their freedom. [07:15] Isaiah prophesied of this event and we [07:18] can see the foreshadowing of this [07:19] prophecy [music] not just for Ezra's [07:21] generation, but ours as well. [07:26] >> Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen [07:29] such things? [07:31] Shall the earth [music] be made to give [07:32] birth in one day? [07:34] Or shall a nation be born at once? [07:37] For as soon as Zion was in labor, she [07:40] gave birth to her children. [07:44] >> Many who read these verses today see the [07:47] miracle of our nation's birth. [07:49] But it was very similar in the day of [07:51] Ezra. Nobody was looking after the [07:53] [music] welfare of the Jewish people. It [07:55] wasn't in the interest of those in power [07:58] to restore a Jewish homeland. [08:00] >> [music] [08:00] >> But in just one day, Cyrus made a decree [08:03] and it was done. [08:05] In the same way, our nation came forth [08:08] against all political odds. A remnant [08:11] from the World War and the horrors of [08:13] the Holocaust, [08:14] >> [music] [08:14] >> thus our people returned to the land of [08:17] promise. [08:19] >> The Holocaust [music] of our age wasn't [08:21] the only time our people were nearly [08:23] extinguished. Millions of lives were [08:25] lost in the wars and Babylonian [08:27] conquest, only a remnant remained. [08:30] It was out of the ashes of the stark age [08:32] that we see Psalm 137's cry, often [08:35] recited by our people in our darkest [08:36] [music] [08:37] hours. [08:38] By the rivers of Babylon, we sat and [08:40] wept when we remembered Zion. [08:44] Through that Psalm, [music] we gain a [08:45] glimpse at the grief and the brutality [08:48] of their destruction. And the same [08:49] [music] ancient hope that our fathers [08:51] held to return back to Zion once again. [08:57] >> Behold, on the mountains [music] the [08:59] feet of him who brings good news, who [09:02] announces peace. Celebrate your feasts, [09:05] O Judah, pay your vows, for never again [09:08] will the wicked one pass through you. [09:11] We want to help you discover how the [09:13] Jewish holidays can deepen your [09:16] relationship with God. This enlightening [09:18] book uncovers the profound connection [09:21] between each biblical feast or holy day [09:23] in God's grand plan of salvation through [09:26] our Messiah, Yeshua. [09:28] These sacred appointed [music] days not [09:30] only commemorate past events, they also [09:33] unveil insights [music] into future [09:35] promises to come. It's a double [09:37] revelation, both immediate and [09:39] prophetic, waiting for you to explore. [09:42] Get your free book and discover Yeshua [09:45] in the biblical calendar. [09:52] The people of Israel had experienced [09:55] invasion, slaughter, exile, and [09:58] humiliation at the hands of the [09:59] Babylonians. But even [music] in this, [10:02] God maintained a promise, a glimmer of [10:05] hope in the midst of our cry. He would [10:08] restore the fortunes of Israel [music] [10:10] and end our exile, bringing us back to [10:13] the land. [10:15] And as it was in those times, we [music] [10:17] have seen the same pattern play out in [10:19] modern day. At the rise of the Persian [10:21] Empire, Cyrus made a proclamation, [10:24] allowing us to return and rebuild. [10:27] And just as God did back [music] then, [10:29] today we've seen how he used world [10:32] events, shifting of nations, and even [10:34] tragedy to pave the way for this present [10:38] Aliyah. [10:39] Despite international [music] sentiments [10:41] and proclamations to establish a Jewish [10:44] home for the Jewish people [music] [10:45] before World War II, these promises did [10:48] not materialize before and to some [10:51] degree also after World War II, the [10:54] British Empire worked to keep Jewish [10:57] people away from returning to their [10:59] ancestral homeland. [11:01] They needed to gain favor with the Arab [11:03] countries and keep their access to [11:06] oil-rich territory. [11:08] The British needed the allegiance of [11:10] these Arab nations to secure vital oil [11:14] trade. [11:15] They saw little benefit to establishing [11:17] Israel, which would enrage their [11:19] prospective allies. [11:21] During World War II, the British even [11:23] prevented those trying to escape [music] [11:25] the Holocaust from reaching Israel's [11:28] shores. [11:30] >> But despite that position, in just one [11:32] day in 1948, a nation was formed. All of [11:36] President Truman's advisers counseled [11:38] that the US vote against establishing [11:40] the Jewish state in the coming UN's [11:42] League of Nations vote. In fact, even [11:45] Truman himself seemed opposed up until [11:47] the last second. But at the last moment, [11:50] he made the official recognition of the [11:52] Jewish state, shocking his own generals [11:54] and diplomats. Later, at a banquet, [11:56] [music] [11:57] when Truman was being introduced as the [11:58] man who helped create the state of [12:00] Israel, Truman interrupted the presenter [12:02] and said, "What do you mean helped to [12:04] create? I am Cyrus." [12:08] >> Many commentators [music] [12:09] state that Truman arguably played the [12:12] decisive diplomatic role in the birth of [12:15] the new state of Israel. But it wasn't a [12:17] perfect alliance. Truman may have been [12:20] quick to recognize Israel, but in the [12:22] same [music] stroke, he laid an arms [12:25] embargo on the Middle East, forcing [12:27] Israel to scavenge for weapons to [12:29] survive. [12:32] >> An alliance between a Judeo-Christian [12:34] democracy like the United States could [12:36] potentially be explained by politics. [12:39] It's possible that Truman was just [12:41] courting the Christian and Jewish vote. [12:44] But the story many never hear is the [12:46] other Cyrus, the most unlikely ally of [12:49] Israel, Joseph Stalin. [12:53] >> Stalin may have presided over some of [12:55] the worst persecution of the Jewish [12:57] people in history. But in 1947, as the [13:01] debate of Israel's future ranged, it was [13:04] Russia's leadership that shocked Jewish [13:07] diplomats and the world. They supported [13:10] the Jewish state not just through UN [13:13] resolutions, but approving arms deals, [13:15] >> [music] [13:15] >> which helped secure weapons crucial to [13:18] Israel's defense in the War of [13:20] Independence. [13:21] While there are various theories as to [13:23] why the Russians shifted [music] their [13:25] stance on Israel, Stalin's decision is [13:28] still shrouded in mystery. [13:31] Abba Eban later recalled, "Nothing had [13:34] prepared us for this [music] windfall. [13:36] Moscow was reversing its traditional [13:39] posture by proposing the option of a [13:41] Jewish state. I had come to the United [13:44] Nations with a pessimistic assumption [13:46] about the balance of forces. [13:49] I now revise my predictions. [13:51] For the first time, [music] our [13:53] political sky was lit up with a gleam of [13:55] hope. It was no longer necessary to be a [13:59] romantic optimist in order to foresee a [14:02] Zionist success. Gromyko had become a [14:05] Zionist hero." [14:08] >> We can look historically to many who [14:10] were influential in the reestablishing [14:12] of the state of Israel in 1948. [14:15] But even now, more than 75 years later, [14:19] our hope is anchored not in any [14:21] politician or government leader. It's [14:24] anchored in the faithful hand of God [14:27] leading his people through exile, [14:29] suffering, and return, and preserving [14:32] his promises by his amazing grace. [14:36] >> Amazing [14:39] grace, [music] [14:40] how sweet the sound [14:44] that saved [14:46] a [14:47] wretch like [14:48] >> [singing] [14:48] >> me. [14:51] I was [singing] [14:53] lost, [14:55] but now [14:57] I'm found. [14:58] Was [music] blind, but [15:01] >> [singing] [15:03] >> now I see. [15:10] >> [music] [15:17] [music] [15:22] [singing] [15:27] [music] [15:39] [music] [15:42] >> My chains are gone. [15:45] All things are new. [15:48] >> [music] [15:49] >> My God [15:50] >> [singing] [15:51] >> my savior [15:53] has ransomed me. [15:55] >> [music] [16:02] [music] [16:02] [singing] [16:10] [music] [16:17] [music] [16:25] [music] [16:31] >> He will [16:33] my shield and portion be [16:38] as long [16:39] >> [music] [16:40] >> as [singing] life [16:42] endures. [16:46] >> [music] [16:55] [music] [16:58] [singing] [16:59] [music] [17:05] [music] [17:19] >> Be thou my vision [17:20] >> [music] [17:21] >> earth shall [singing] soon dissolve [17:24] like snow. [17:26] The sun [music] [17:28] forbear [singing] [17:30] to shine. [17:35] >> [music] [17:43] [music] [17:44] [singing] [17:49] [music] [17:55] [music] [18:03] [music] [18:11] [music] [18:17] [music] [18:24] [music] [18:34] >> Behold, on the mountains the feet of him [18:37] who brings good news, who announces [18:39] peace. Celebrate your feasts, oh Judah, [18:43] pay your vows, for never again will the [18:45] wicked one pass through you. [18:48] We want to help you discover how the [18:50] Jewish holidays can deepen your [18:52] relationship with God. This enlightening [18:55] book uncovers the profound connection [18:57] between each biblical feast or holy day [19:00] in God's grand plan of salvation through [19:03] our Messiah, Yeshua. [19:05] These sacred appointed days not only [19:07] commemorate past events, they also [19:10] unveil insights into future promises to [19:12] come. It's a double revelation, both [19:15] immediate and prophetic, waiting for you [19:18] to explore. Get your free book [music] [19:21] and discover Yeshua in the biblical [19:23] calendar. [19:29] God used Cyrus, the king of Persia, to [19:32] allow Jewish people to return from exile [19:34] and dwell in our land again. [19:37] In the aftermath of great tragedy and [19:39] loss, Jews from Assyria, Babylon, and [19:42] Persia began to stream back to Israel. [19:46] In the last century, after World War II, [19:48] we saw a similar shift taking place. The [19:51] great [music] Aliyah had begun. [19:54] >> Unlike the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, [19:56] when we could be in the land but not [19:57] rule it, we finally became a sovereign [19:59] nation once again in 1948. [20:02] But the story continues. [20:04] Just as both [music] foreign kings [20:06] helped to fund the restoration of [20:07] Jerusalem and the temple, we see that [20:09] since 1948 until today, God has moved [20:12] some nations, most notably the United [20:14] States, to provide hundreds of billions [20:16] of dollars in aid. [20:18] >> We could go on and on about unlikely [20:21] alliances and amazing last-minute [20:23] diplomatic and military victories, which [20:26] shocked the world time [music] and time [20:28] again. [20:30] But looking at the facts, you have to [20:32] ask yourselves, [20:33] are we just [music] [20:34] lucky? Was all this due to our own skill [20:38] and intellect? [20:39] Or do we have to admit that God has [20:42] divinely and sovereignly set up the [20:44] nation of Israel and brought us back for [20:47] even greater things to come? [20:51] You know, we're reading Isaiah 11 that, [20:53] you know, God is asking [20:56] a question. Can a nation be born [20:59] in one day? [21:00] >> Yes, it it it can happen because it [21:03] happened. And, you know, God's [21:06] prophecies we see are continuously [21:08] fulfilled and yet to be fulfilled. But [21:11] the amazing thing is really the 1948. [21:15] >> On the 29th of November, 1947, the [21:18] League of Nations, later to become the [21:20] United Nations, held a vote [21:23] about dividing the land of Israel. The [21:25] eastern part, you know, the mountainous [21:27] part will become part of the kingdom of [21:30] Jordan, and the western side, the [21:32] worthless land, you know, on the coastal [21:33] area, would become the Jewish state of [21:36] Israel. [21:37] And miraculously enough itself, but the [21:39] vote in the League of Nations was [21:41] positive. I remember my dad, who was a [21:44] kid at the time, telling me, you know, [21:46] remembers the you know, they're going [21:47] out in the streets and partying, you [21:49] know, all night and dancing and [21:50] whatever. And as the British were [21:51] getting ready to leave, the Arab nations [21:53] around Israel said, "We're not We're not [21:55] accepting this. I mean, we're going to [21:58] come down and we're going to wipe all [21:59] the Jews out. We're going to, you know, [22:02] you know, drown them in the sea, you [22:03] know, the the Jewish people, the the [22:05] generation of your grandmother, my [22:07] grandfather. [22:08] Uh they are preparing to defend [22:11] themselves. [22:11] >> Mhm. [22:12] >> And so, about 6 months later, [22:16] just before the British literally left, [22:18] or right after, uh on the 14th of May, [22:22] 1948, [22:23] the um [22:25] the first Israeli government declared [22:29] the statehood. [22:30] And so, [22:32] in a very real way, also legally [22:34] speaking, it was born born in a day. And [22:36] then and then, you know, the war, what [22:38] we call the War of Independence, started [22:40] when several armies uh all around have [22:42] attacked us and uh much to the um [22:45] surprise, I mean, it was really was a [22:47] miracle that the state of Israel has [22:49] won. [22:50] >> Mhm. [22:50] >> We didn't really have an organized army. [22:52] We didn't have equipment. The Arab [22:54] armies around us were much much much [22:56] larger, better equipped. But um [22:59] but we stood. [23:00] >> When we're thinking about uh the [23:03] remnant, and I'm talking about the [23:05] disciples of Yeshua, those that love [23:07] Yeshua, and we're thinking about, for [23:09] example, in 1948, [23:12] there were maybe 23 individuals [23:15] >> Your grandmother was one of them. [23:17] >> So, my grandmother, [23:20] they her family were living in Germany. [23:23] In 1934, she strongly felt conviction [23:28] to come to Israel. [23:30] >> Now, her family [23:32] completely Jewish, but they were already [23:33] believers in Yeshua in Germany. [23:35] >> in Yeshua. Her arrival in Haifa was [23:39] significant because she met her husband [23:42] there, who was also living in Israel, [23:44] and their ancestries lived there for [23:48] hundreds of years. A story of miracles [23:50] and a story of God's grace, really, [23:52] because her parents and sister, they [23:56] were murdered in the Holocaust, and [24:00] that's why I'm here, kind of. [24:02] >> And when my grandfather was in his, you [24:04] know, late teen years, maybe early 20s, [24:07] he was studying to be a lawyer in the [24:09] capital of Bulgaria, in the University [24:11] of Sofia, [24:12] and [24:13] his sister, older sister, has already [24:15] come to Israel, and she was, you know, a [24:17] pioneer, chalutza, and she wrote him and [24:20] his other siblings, "Who needs another [24:21] Jewish lawyer? You should come to Israel [24:23] and build the, you know, build the, [24:24] build the land, and so on, so on." [24:26] And so, much to the dismay of his [24:28] parents, that's what he did. [24:30] And when he came here, there was no [24:31] land. [24:32] And so, my grandfather and his sister [24:35] and their friends, and that that [24:36] generation, they bought land. [24:39] >> Right. [24:40] >> But they wouldn't sell them the good [24:41] land. They they sold them the swamps. [24:42] They drained the swamps [24:45] and built the land, you know, on on [24:47] Israel's coastal area, the area that [24:49] currently 70% of Israelis reside. [24:51] >> Yeah. [24:52] >> And so, that was, in and of itself, [24:55] >> Mhm. think a miracle. [24:57] >> Yeah. [24:57] >> Fast forward [24:59] 78 years and we're Israel's now 78 years [25:02] old. Conservative estimates are that [25:05] there's between 30,000 to 50,000 Jewish [25:09] followers of Yeshua in over 300 [25:13] synagogues, congregations, churches [25:15] around the country. So, yes, we still [25:18] are a remnant, a small portion, but [25:20] we're much bigger, more visible a [25:24] remnant and you know, if you label [25:26] yourself [25:28] anti-Zionism [25:30] and God says, "I love Zion. I desire [25:34] Zion." Who you put yourself against? [25:37] It's not against you and me. [25:39] You know, it's against God himself. [25:41] >> God himself, but also that would be a [25:43] place where all nation it says will come [25:47] >> to worship the Lord of hosts. [25:48] >> the Lord of hosts. All nation means all [25:51] nations that are not from the Jewish [25:54] people, obviously, will come and join [25:56] the blessings of Israel coming up to the [26:00] mountain and worshipping God in Zion. [26:03] >> Well, Cissie, thank you so much. It is a [26:06] a miracle. [26:07] Um [26:07] State of Israel and a joy for us to be [26:09] part of that. Um thank you. [26:12] >> The odds were always against us. And [26:15] just like in Ezra and Nehemiah's day [26:17] many times our future looked grim, but [26:20] then God in his perfect timing, just as [26:23] predicted thousands of years ago by the [26:25] prophets of old [26:27] orchestrated an amazing story and made [26:30] the impossible [26:31] possible. [26:32] >> Ezra and Nehemiah walked in miracles and [26:35] overcame impossible odds because they [26:38] kept their eyes fixed on God's promises [26:40] in the midst of impossible situations. [26:44] They read the promises of the prophets [26:46] >> [music] [26:46] >> and their belief helped them stand and [26:48] lead our people to victory and closer to [26:50] God. [26:52] And likewise, we have the same [26:54] opportunity [music] as the prophets have [26:55] more to say about the nation we live in [26:57] today. [26:59] Will we cower to the [music] odds and [27:00] fear, or stand in faith looking to God's [27:03] promises? [27:05] >> [music]
