“And it will come about in the last days that the mountain of the house of Yahweh will be established as the chief of the mountains. It will be raised above the hills, and the peoples will stream to it. Many nations will come and say, ‘Come and let us go up to the mountain of Yahweh and to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us about His ways and that we may walk in His paths.’ For from Zion will go forth the law, even the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem.” Micah 4: 1-2
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Yahweh is not a Liar: Count on It
Mitch Ginsburg wrote an interesting article for the Times of Israel titled “After evacuating Gaza, a lonely general of faith struggles for Israel’s salvation”. It’s about a recently retired Israeli general named Gershon Hacohen:
One of the most important emerging voices on the Israeli right and one of the most interesting figures to come out of the army in recent years is deeply religious but unorthodox, an evangelist of settlements who happens to have presided over the settlement movement’s greatest defeat.
A former general, Gershon Hacohen, who commanded the army’s 2005 Gaza withdrawal and oversaw the forced removal of the 8,000 settlers living among 1.5 million Palestinians in the territory, remains haunted by the choice he was forced to make between his conscience and his uniform — between the rule of law and an army he calls “holy” on one hand, and, on the other, the historic imperative he sees in retaining every inch of land he believes God gave to the Jews.
He asserted, in fact, that any further territorial concession would be more harmful to Israel than an Iranian nuclear bomb on Tel Aviv.
“Any two-state solution equals the expulsion of more than 100,000 Jews and that is impossible,” the newly retired Maj. Gen. (res) Hacohen said. “It is a catastrophe.”
“It is worse than the Iranian threat, because I know how to live with an Iranian bomb on Tel Aviv, God forbid, I don’t want it to happen, but it is war. And I know how to live with the horrible cost of war. I pray it won’t happen, but I don’t know how to live with destruction of dozens of settlements and study halls and synagogues and the exiling of Jews from the Land of Israel.”
General Gershon Hacohen is a man with a conscience, and he is a thinking person. More importantly, he is becoming a man of real faith.
This is my interpretation of what Hacohen said:
- Yahweh is Israel’s Protector. He promised that He would exile most of the Children of Israel from the Promised Land for their lawlessness and their lack of faith in Him but that He would bring them back. Those things have started to happen already. I say “started to happen” because many more of Yahweh’s people are on the way. They need room to spread out. Yahweh took care of that a long time ago by promising them land on which to live.
- What does Yahweh expect from the Children of Israel? Faith and obedience because Yahweh never changes.
- The land that we call Gaza is part of the Promised Land. So is the West Bank. The Promised Land’s borders are clearly defined in the Bible. It includes all the land that we call Israel today plus Gaza and the West Bank and much more land besides.
- Surrendering land that Yahweh promised to the Children of Israel is lawless and faithless.
I’ll be brutally frank: if Yahweh’s promises to and about the Children of Israel are meaningless, then Yahweh is a liar. But,
- Yahweh is not a liar.
- Faith in Yahweh and obedience to Him and His promises are essential.
Consider Exodus 13: 17-18:
17 Now when Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was near; for God said, “The people might change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” 18 Hence God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Red Sea; and the sons of Israel went up in martial array from the land of Egypt.
Yahweh knew that the Children of Israel would want to turn back if they encountered war immediately when they started their exodus from Egypt on their way to the Promised Land. A journey that should have taken two weeks at most ended up taking 40 years. Why?
The answer: lawlessness and faithlessness.
Below is an excerpt from His Name is Yahweh:
The Wilderness Journey Comes to an End
When Yahweh led the Children of Israel out of Egypt, He could have taken them to the Promised Land in less than two weeks. Instead, the trip took 40 years. When they left Egypt, the Children of Israel were full of hope and anticipation about meeting Yahweh and entering the Promised Land. But only two Israelites (Joshua and Caleb) who were over the age of 20 when they started out got to their final destination. Why? The answer is sin.
The Israelites rebelled against Yahweh and broke His Laws again and again, but even more important than their willful disobedience was their lack of faith in Him. They simply would not trust Yahweh, and faith is the foundation of our relationship with Him. (Habakkuk 2: 4 and Hebrews 11: 6)
God allowed His people to die in the wilderness rather than permitting them to further pollute the Holy Land with their sinful ways. The people Yahweh drove out of the Promised Land to make room for the Israelites had polluted it already, and that is why they were being removed. (Leviticus 18: 24-25) They had contaminated it with their “disgusting practices” (Ezra 9: 11) which had “filled it with filth from end to end.” (Ezra 9: 11)
Joshua and Caleb were allowed to enter the Promised Land because they demonstrated faith in Yahweh, and that is what He requires.
As I said, Yahweh never changes. He still demands faith and obedience. Joshua and Caleb were the only two adults who left Egypt that were allowed to enter the Promised Land because they were the only two adults who demonstrated faith and obedience. Even Moses was denied admission because he failed to obey Yahweh.
What was Moses’ offense? If you want some really bizarre answers to that question, just ask a few churchgoers. Most of them will amuse you because they don’t have a clue.
Begin by asking them this question: was Moses allowed to enter the Promised Land? I’ll bet that most churchgoers can’t answer it correctly.
Then ask the ones who can answer that question why Moses wasn’t allowed to enter the Promised Land, and be ready for just about anything.
The answer is simple, though. Moses was denied admission to the Promised Land because Yahweh told him to speak to a rock and water would gush out of it. The Children of Israel made Moses angry, so he hit the rock with a stick instead. (Numbers 20: 1-13)
Water did gush forth just as Yahweh said it would, but Moses was buried on Mount Nebo. He never entered the Promised Land, but Yahweh did allow him to see it from a distance. He was permitted to look across the Arava, and he saw Jerusalem before it was Jerusalem. It must have been a really clear day.
I am thankful for Yahweh’s grace because we are saved by grace through faith. That’s Bible 101, but I feel the need to say this because far too many Christians today believe that they are saved by grace alone.
That’s not what the Bible says. It says that we are saved BY grace THROUGH faith in Yahweh, and we know that saving faith manifests itself in obedience. Read Hebrews chapter 11 if you have any doubts. That chapter is loaded with examples of people who demonstrated faith in Yahweh.
James said it perfectly: “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, ‘You have faith and I have works’; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” (James 2: 17-18)
In other words, what we do really does matter, and it matters a lot.
Yahweh came in human form to shed His blood and die as our Passover Lamb. He paid the price for our sins that Yahweh’s law demands so that we can be with Him for eternity. He is our Savior and our Redeemer. The word “redeem” literally means to pay the price. That’s exactly what He did.
Yahweh did not pay the price for our sins so that we can live lives that are full of lawlessness and faithlessness—debauchery.
Yahweh still expects us to have faith in Him and to obey Him. As He said, “You will know them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7: 16)
Standing with Israel is every believer’s duty. It’s not a matter of personal preference. It’s based on Yahweh’s promises, faith in Him, and willingness to obey Him.
General Hacohen is moving in the right direction. So are Tzipi Hotovely and Ayelet Shaked. Many other Israelis are moving in the right direction as well, but Yahweh still has a lot of work to do. Thankfully, He never fails. Eventually, Israel will come around.
At the end of the day, all that we have to rely on are Yahweh’s promises. That’s enough, but this is key: we can’t reject some of His promises and accept others. That’s not my opinion. That’s what Yahweh said.
Bottom line: Yahweh is Sovereign. Faith and obedience are the things that separate believers from the rest, and that’s not my opinion, either.
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Extra Section: Zechariah Chapter 10
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If you read SnyderTalk regularly, you know how discouraging the news is day after day. The diabolical Iran deal, terror in the streets, lying, cheating, and stealing are good examples. It’s depressing. Well, there is hope.
Below is Zechariah chapter 10. Some of the things that Yahweh talked about have been done already, but there is more to come:
1 Ask rain from Yahweh at the time of the spring rain—Yahweh who makes the storm clouds; and He will give them showers of rain, vegetation in the field to each man.
2 For the teraphim [household idols] speak iniquity, and the diviners see lying visions and tell false dreams; they comfort in vain. Therefore the people wander like sheep, they are afflicted, because there is no shepherd.
3 “My anger is kindled against the shepherds [the religious leaders], and I will punish the male goats; for Yahweh Sabaoth has visited His flock, the house of Judah, and will make them like His majestic horse in battle.”
4 “From them will come the cornerstone [the Messiah], from them the tent peg [the Messiah], from them the bow of battle [the Messiah], from them every ruler, all of them together.”
5 “They will be as mighty men, treading down the enemy in the mire of the streets in battle; and they will fight, for Yahweh will be with them; and the riders on horses will be put to shame.”
6 “I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them back, because I have had compassion on them; and they will be as though I had not rejected them, for I am Yahweh their God and I will answer them.”
7 “Ephraim will be like a mighty man, and their heart will be glad as if from wine; indeed, their children will see it and be glad, their heart will rejoice in Yahweh.”
8 “I will whistle for them to gather them together, for I have redeemed them; and they will be as numerous as they were before.”
9 “When I scatter them among the peoples, they will remember Me in far countries, and they with their children will live and come back.”
10 “I will bring them back from the land of Egypt and gather them from Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon until no room can be found for them.”
11 “And they will pass through the sea of distress and He will strike the waves in the sea, so that all the depths of the Nile will dry up; and the pride of Assyria will be brought down and the scepter of Egypt will depart.”
12 “And I will strengthen them in Yahweh, and in His Name they will walk,” declares Yahweh.
HalleluYah!
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Steve Apfel: The lie that broke Israel’s back— It was November 2012, in the dead of winter, when the ghoul of a lie came back to haunt Israel. The specter, a paper tiger with young biting teeth, appeared in the assembly hall of the United Nations where diplomats are perpetually at daggers drawn. The ghoul was called ‘Observer with non-member status.’ This made it not quite real but not imaginary either, hence young teeth indicative of the latent threat it posed. But just for now Israel had to contend with a quasi-state called ‘Palestine.’ “A victory for the values of truth,” exclaimed Sudan’s diplomat after UN members voted to give Palestine that halfling status. In General Assembly ‘speak’ what he meant was a defeat for truth and a victory for a lie of long standing. For Israel it meant a threat, of historic proportions. For international law it meant relegation to a fun league. For the ruling clique that wanted the UN to create a new state it meant second prize. For nine-tenths of member countries it meant one step closer to rescinding the right of Israel to exist. For America and Europe it meant a new arm-twisting lever to get Israel to do their bidding. For all players it meant a whole new ballgame.
SnyderTalk Comment: The stage is being set for a final confrontation. It’s just a matter of time.
Caroline Glick: Obama’s enemies list—In President Obama’s defense of his nuclear deal with Iran Wednesday, he said there are only two types of people who will oppose his deal – Republican partisans and Israel- firsters – that is, traitors. At American University, Obama castigated Republican lawmakers as the moral equivalent of Iranian jihadists saying, “Those [Iranian] hard-liners chanting ‘Death to America’ who have been most opposed to the deal… are making common cause with the Republican Caucus.” He then turned his attention to Israel. Obama explained that whether or not you believe the deal endangers Israel boils down to whom you trust more – him or Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And, he explained, he can be trusted to protect Israel better than Netanyahu can because “[I] have been a stalwart friend of Israel throughout my career.” The truth is that it shouldn’t much matter to US lawmakers whether Obama or Netanyahu has it right about Israel. Israel isn’t a party to the deal and isn’t bound by it. If Israel decides it needs to act on its own, it will.
Alan M. Dershowitz: The President Gets Personal about the Iran Deal— President Obama, in his desperation to save his Iran deal, has taken to attacking its opponents in personal ways. He has accused critics of his deal of being the same Republican warmongers who drove us into the ground war against Iraq and has warned that they would offer “overheated” and often dishonest arguments. He has complained about the influence of lobbyists and money on the process of deciding this important issue, as if lobbying and money were not involved in other important matters before Congress. These types of ad hominem arguments are becoming less and less convincing as more Democratic members of Congress, more liberal supporters of the President, more nuclear experts and more foreign policy gurus are expressing deep concern about, and sometimes strong opposition to, the deal that is currently before Congress.
SnyderTalk Comment: Obama has been lying to the American people since Day One. Now, people are beginning to wake up. Problem is he’s already done a lot of damage.
Is it too late to stop the Iran deal? I think it is. The unanimous vote of support for it in the U.N. Security Council seals the deal. I think that trying to reverse it at this point is impossible.
I’m not saying that we should stop trying. I’m just saying that we won’t succeed. Trying and failing is better than not trying at all.
Dan Roberts, Sabrina Siddiqui, and Saeed Kamali Dehghan: Obama accuses Iran deal opponents of luring Congress toward Middle East war—Barack Obama turned his opposition to the Iraq war into a trump card against critics of the Iran nuclear deal on Wednesday, in a speech that accused “armchair” warmongers in Washington of luring Congress toward another military conflict in the Middle East. As US lawmakers prepare for a potentially crippling vote of disapproval, his verbal assault not just on arguments against the deal, but on the credibility of the hawks making them, marks a new chapter in what may prove the most intensive legislative battle of his presidency. “Between now and the congressional vote in September, you are going to hear a lot of arguments against this deal backed by tens of millions of dollars of advertising,” Obama said. “If the arguments sound familiar, they should. Many of the same people who argued for the war in Iraq are now making the case against the Iran nuclear deal.”
SnyderTalk Comment: Obama started the fire that is raging now and moving us toward an all-out war. The Iran deal makes matters worse. He’s to blame.
Orly Azoulay: It could have been Netanyahu’s finest hour—Battalions of Jewish leaders, rabbis, lobbyists, and political donors working on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s behalf have been dashing from point to point on Captiol Hill, in order to rally Democratic lawmakers against their sitting president. The mission they were given: trip up President Barack Obama’s foreign policy. Imagine Obama sending his people to the Likud headquarters in order to initiate a revolt against Netanyahu. The deal with Iran has led to an openly hostile relationship between the Oval office and the Prime Minister’s Residence. If Netanyahu was once received with honor and suspicion in the White House, today the honor has all but vanished, leaving only the suspicion. Obama managed to quite easily aim a few jabs at Netanyahu Wednesday. He categorized those seeking a better deal with Iran as “selling a fantasy,” and later labeled the deal’s opponents as being “ignorant or not truthful.” Harsh words, and not by chance. Obama is a seasoned politician. But even a beginner could easily decrypt the map of interests and power connections between Netanyahu and American politics. More than just battling the deal, Netanyahu is trying to present Obama as a weak and naive president. His mission, the White House claims, is to pave the way for a Republican president.
SnyderTalk Comment: I don’t buy Azoulay’s argument. Netanyahu is doing what he must do, and he is in a unique position. More Americans support Israel than Obama for good reasons.
Marissa Newman: Israel “Doesn’t Doubt Obama’s Sincerity,” But Disagrees on Iran—Israel “doesn’t doubt President Obama’s sincerity” on the Iran nuclear deal, but disagrees that the accord blocks Tehran from developing nuclear weapons, an Israeli diplomatic source said Wednesday, following a speech by the president. “This deal does not prevent war but rather hastens it because it gives Iran international legitimacy to build the infrastructure for an arsenal of nuclear bombs; it bolsters its terror machine and its aggression with hundreds of millions of dollars,” the Israeli official said. “Iran’s economic crisis today restricts its capacity for destruction, and removing the sanctions will propel it to proportions that will endanger Israel, the region, and the entire world,” the official said. “The deal leaves Iran with nuclear infrastructure that a peaceful program does not need, but which is essential for a military nuclear program. Those seeking a civilian nuclear program don’t need thousands of uranium-enriching centrifuges.” “The claim that Iran won’t be able to hide a military nuclear program does not correspond to reality,” he added. “Iran already managed to fool the international community and build secret nuclear facilities in Natanz and Qom.”
SnyderTalk Comment: I doubt Obama’s sincerity.
Peter Huessy—And When We Are Faced with a Nuclear Iran?:
- Are we actually being told, then, that the only way to prevent Iran from having nuclear bombs is to let it have them? If not now, in 10-15 years? And with intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the U.S.?
- Even supporters of the deal say that yes, at the ten year mark, Iran will be able to breakout and build a weapon’s worth of nuclear fuel in a year or less — in other words, have nuclear bombs.
- Iran has never come clean with the IAEA — or anyone else — about its nuclear activities. These were discovered not by IAEA inspectors but by the U.S. and allied law enforcement and intelligence services, as well as by dissident groups within Iran. Are we actually assuming that Iran, under this new deal, will now come clean?
- Thus under the July deal the U.S. may not (technically) know if Iran, after a breakout, has a nuclear weapon arsenal until Iran either tests a nuclear warhead or explodes it in an American or Israeli city. Then, of course, the discovery will be “too late” to do anything about, especially if the U.S. is helping Iran with technology assistance designed to prevent attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites.
- Having made so many concessions to a non-nuclear Iran, how tough in the future will we be, faced with a nuclear Iran?
Josh Rogin and Eli Lake: U.S. Intelligence: Iran Already Sanitizing Nuclear Site—Satellite imagery picked up by U.S. intelligence in mid- and late July showed that Iran had moved bulldozers and other heavy machinery to the suspected nuclear military site at Parchin to clean up the site ahead of planned inspections by the IAEA. This calls into question Iran’s intention to fully account for the possible military dimensions of its current and past nuclear development. David Albright, president of the Institute for Science and International Security, said, “You have to worry that…it’s Iran’s last-ditch effort to eradicate evidence there. The day is coming when they are going to have to let the IAEA into Parchin, so they may be desperate to finish sanitizing the site.” The facility first came to the attention of the international community in 2004 when reports surfaced that it was being used to test explosives for a nuclear warhead. In 2012, Abright’s group reported on satellite imagery that it said showed efforts to clean up evidence of an explosives testing chamber there.
Walter Russell Mead: The Strategic Impact of the Iran Deal—Whatever the Iran agreement (JCPOA) does in terms of the nuclear program, when it comes to the conventional balance in the region the JCPOA appears to strengthen Iran. The end of sanctions does not just result in a “windfall” gain to Iran as frozen assets are released; it also adds substantial and growing amounts to Iran’s national income as normal trade relations resume, as Iranian oil production expands, and as access to markets for new technology and spare parts increases the productivity of Iranian society. In the short term, this means that Iran will have more money with which to support regional allies like the Assad regime in Damascus; in the medium term, as conventional weapons restrictions are lifted, Iran will have the opportunity to strengthen both defensive and offensive arms capabilities; in the medium to long term, Iran’s greater economic clout will substantially increase its political weight both in the region and in world affairs, giving it new allies and making a return to sanctions and isolation increasingly unlikely. The JCPOA strengthens Iran’s hand by reducing its isolation and adding significantly to its economic resources. Unless this effect is offset by a much more robust policy of containing Iran, the JCPOA will make the Middle East as a whole less secure.
Bassam Tawil—One Difference between Palestinians and Israelis:
- I cannot count the number of times that I heard from Israeli Jews the phrases “I’m ashamed” and “I’m sorry” in response to the horrific crime that claimed the life of Palestinian toddler Ali Dawabsha in the West Bank village of Duma last week.
- The wall-to-wall Israeli condemnation of this crime by the Israeli public and leaders has left me and other Palestinians embarrassed because this is not how we react to terror attacks against Jews – even the murder of Jewish children.
- Mahmoud Abbas’ ambiguous, half-hearted condemnations of attacks by Palestinians against Israelis are only intended for public consumption and are primarily aimed at appeasing Western donors. His condemnations almost always seek to blame Israel for the Palestinian terror attacks.
- I cannot remember ever hearing Abbas or any other Palestinian leader express shock and outrage over the killing of a Jew in a Palestinian terror attack. Moreover, each time Abbas reluctantly condemns a Palestinian terror attack, he faces a wave of criticism from many Palestinians. How many times have we taken to the streets to hand out sweets and candies in jubilation over the killing of Jews?
Bassam Tawil—Nuclearizing Iran, Sabotaging Arabs:
- Obama’s solution? To let Iran have legitimate nuclear bombs in a few years, along with intercontinental ballistic missiles to deliver them to the U.S. — or perhaps from America’s soft underbelly, South America, where Iran has been acquiring uranium and establishing bases for years. Or perhaps launched from submarines off America’s coast, which would make the identity of the attacker unknowable and a response therefore impossible. Incredibly, America’s politicians do not even seem to seem to be concerned about that.
- We have just sacrificed Sunni stability for American ideology: empty slogans fed to us by clueless, if well-meaning, American officials.
- As we watched one stable Arab regime fall after another, we have allowed ourselves to be destroyed from within by these bungling diplomats — from America, Europe, China and Russia. Instead of keeping our eyes on the real threat, we exhausted ourselves in wasteful, unending battles against the Jews — meanwhile letting the Iranian menace slip out of sight.
- We have been dealing almost exclusively with the marginal issue of Palestine and the Jews, to excuse our inability to give Obama what he really needs: regional stability.
Alan Baker—Condemnation and Condolence by the UN Secretary General – Genuine or Politically Biased?:
- The recent tragic act of terrorism and hatred that caused the murder of a Palestinian child is deserving of utter condemnation and repudiation by all elements of society, and has indeed been so condemned and rejected.
- Yet UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s statement on July 31 that arbitrarily links this heinous act to the “absence of a political process and Israel’s illegal settlement policy, as well as the harsh and unnecessary practice of demolishing Palestinian houses” is nothing more than a regrettable politicization of what should be a straightforward message of sorrow and condolence.
- He cannot and should not render a political determination declaring that the event was caused by the lack of a political process or by Israel’s settlement policy.
- Reviewing his condemnations of terrorist attacks elsewhere, none arbitrarily proffer political value judgments. Thus, as in most issues regarding Israel, the classical UN double-standard would appear to be applied.
Liu Rong: Iran to Receive Jet Fighters from China—Iran will get 24 J-10 fighters from China in exchange for allowing Beijing to utilize the large Azadegan oilfield over the next 20 years, according to the Taiwanese China Times. The fighters, which have a range of 2,940 km., will be delivered to Iran by 2020. They will increase Iran’s air force capabilities in defending the country’s key facilities and even pose a threat to Israel.
Burak Bekdil—Turkey and Its Kurds: At War Again:
- “We have only one concern. It is Islam, Islam and Islam.” – President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, July 31, 2015.
- Why should they be fighting? After all, they are both Sunni Muslims.
- Once again, Erdogan, an Islamist, relied too much on religion in resolving what is essentially an ethnic (not religious) conflict.
Clifford D. May: Mounting a defense against economic warfare— Attempts to exterminate Israel through what we have come to call “kinetic warfare” began immediately following Arab rejection of the U.N. Partition Plan of 1947 — the first offer of a “two-state solution.” Against all odds, the fledgling Jewish state prevailed in that conflict, as it did in other wars waged by coalitions of its Arab neighbors, including the Six Day War of 1967 (which ended with Israelis taking Gaza from Egypt, and East Jerusalem and the West Bank from Jordan) and the Yom Kippur War of 1973. Less well known: For more than six decades, economic warfare also has been waged against Israelis. “Efforts to boycott Israel and to force companies around the world to break off relations with it were centerpieces of the Arab League’s strategy against Israel since 1948,” Northwestern University law professor Eugene Kontorovich last week testified before a House subcommittee on national security led by Republican Rep. Ron DeSantis of Florida and Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts.
Shoshana Bryen—What Society Says When Children Are Murdered:
- Is there a difference? To the perpetrators, no. To the societies from which the murderers came, the difference is a chasm.
- When the Israeli government announced it had suspects, one suspect’s mother said, “I will be proud of him until Judgment Day. If… it is true… My boys are all righteous, pious and pure. The goal of my children is the triumph of Islam.”
- This weekend in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, thousands of Israelis protested the murder of the baby Ali Saad Dawabshe.
SnyderTalk Comment: Abortion is murdering children, too, and they are the most defenseless children of all. Society says that’s okay because their mothers kill them. It’s evil and it should be stopped.
Prof. Abraham Ben-Zvi: Mr. President, you are no Jack Kennedy— The speech that U.S. President Barack Obama gave at American University on Wednesday was designed to be a tie-breaker in the battle between the supporters and opponents of the “Vienna nuclear deal” with Iran. In an effort to repair his eroding status in the eyes of the American public, and thereby in Congress as well, the president explicitly appropriated the legacy of the beloved and charismatic President John F. Kennedy. Obama addressed his nation and its legislators on the same stage, in the same campus where Kennedy gave his unforgettable address on June 10, 1963. In the 1963 address, Kennedy announced the launch of negotiations with the Kremlin, meant to put an absolute end to nuclear testing and thereby turn over a new leaf in the relations between the two superpowers. By invoking Kennedy, Obama tried to position himself on the same historical continuum as the late president in the minds of the American public. He tried to make himself out to be the leader who, with the Iran nuclear deal, has now laid the groundwork for global and regional stability.
Dexter Van Zile: The Treacherous Waters of Christian-Muslim Dialogue— Whenever Christian and Muslim leaders meet for purposes of inter-religious dialogue, people responsible for the safety and well being of the Jewish people need to pay attention. And it’s not just Jews. Lay Christians and moderate Muslims need to stay on guard as well. Time and again, Christian leaders have proven themselves to be naïve and feckless in their dealings with Muslim dialogue partners. Too often they speak with Muslim leaders who, when they are not speaking words of peace to Christians, promote Jew-hatred and support terrorism to their fellow Muslims. By “dialoging” with Christian leaders, Muslim extremists who promote Islamic supremacism and jihad among their flocks can portray themselves as reasonable dialogue partners committed to religious pluralism. Simply put, Christian leaders are not very good at due diligence and, as a result, often give cover to Islamic anti-Semitism and jihadism.
Keren Aviram: The International Criminal Court on the Mavi Marmara, Continued— On July 16, 2015, a Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) accepted the request by the Union of the Comoros to review the decision by the ICC prosecutor not to investigate the incident of the Mavi Marmara flotilla to Gaza, and requested that the prosecutor reconsider her decision. By a majority of two to one, the judges determined that the prosecutor made material errors in her assessment of the gravity of the incident. The Chamber’s ruling offers a problematic interpretation of the gravity threshold, which is liable to have far-reaching implications for many countries. The ruling also presents a different perception of the Court’s role in the international system that might entail possible damage to the Court’s legitimacy. On July 27, 2015, the prosecutor submitted a notice of appeal and rejected the Chamber’s request that she reconsider her original decision and reopen the probe.
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Skeptics of Iran deal express offense at Obama tactics
Opposition leader Herzog urges clampdown on Jewish extremism
Hamas and Islamic Jihad praise West Bank terror attack as ‘heroic act’
Palestinian Religious Leaders Call to Ban Jews from Temple Mount
Photos: Thousands of Gazan Children Graduate Hamas Military Summer Camp
Arabs Note Failure of U.S.-Trained Syrian Rebels
Palestinian strikes Israelis with vehicle in West Bank terror attack
Aharoni: Israel must untangle its narrative from that of the Palestinians
Egyptians and their leaders are warming to Jews, Israel
Challenging president, Schumer declares opposition to Iran deal
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Senator Schumer Opposes Iran Deal
Ambulance Pelted with Rocks in Jordan Valley
Gaza Rockets Explode on Palestinian Side of the Border
Iran Denies it is ‘Sanitizing’ the Parchin Military Complex
12-Year-Old Firebomb Victim Released from Hospital
Children with Cancer Enjoy a Day of Parachuting
Prosor Urges UN Chief to Condemn Car Terror Attack
Lawsuit Against Temple Mount Discrimination
Will Attorney General Retain ‘Superpowers’?
Wounded Soldiers Out of Life-Threatening Danger
Video: Car Chase After Gazans Closes TA Highway
Three Injured in Vehicular Terror Attack
Hamas Child Soldiers Graduate from ‘Summer Camp’
ISIS Claims Responsibility for Saudi Mosque Attack
Oman and Syria to Work Together to End Civil War
Syrian Death Toll Tops 240,000
Displaced Iraq Christians in Frontline Prayer
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Obama’s unmistakable message to Israel: You stand alone
SnyderTalk Comment: That’s the truth in a nutshell.
IAEA won’t show Congress its nuclear inspection deal with Iran
SnyderTalk Comment: They want all of us to support the Iran deal, but they don’t want us to know what we are being asked to support.
Anyone who buys that logic is an idiot.
Obama: Israel sole objector to Iran deal; Netanyahu is ‘wrong’
Stop butting heads with Obama, Rivlin tells Netanyahu
SnyderTalk Comment: What should Netanyahu do? Whose prime minister is he? Butting heads with Obama goes with the job. If he didn’t butt heads with Obama, Israel would suffer even more.
Full text of Obama’s speech on the Iran nuclear deal
Obama takes to Twitter to defend Iran nuclear deal
Persian Jews in U.S. Bemoan World’s Naivete over Iran Deal
3 hurt in suspected vehicular terror attack in West Bank
PM: Those who decried Jewish terror ‘now silent’
SnyderTalk Comment: It’s the same double standard that the world has applied to Jewish people for centuries. It’s time to nip it in the bud.
Who is Meir Ettinger, the Shin Bet’s No.1 alleged Jewish nationalist?
Radical Jewish group’s head advocates burning churches
Blast kills at least 4, injures 30 near Rafah in Gaza
Police officer sounded alarm on Yishai Schlissel ahead of pride parade
In new project, pro-Israel voices opt for satire over polemic
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The Left’s [in Israel] unbounded cynicism
Burning of Christian churches in Israel justified, far-Right Jewish leader says
Jordanians protest over UN Palestinian aid agency crisis
‘Argentine officials knew attack was coming, but did nothing’
Netanyahu anti-Iran drive strains US ties, isolates Israel: president
Israel’s Pride Parade Stabbings And The Gay-Rights Intifada
Christian Persecution in the Middle East Goes Beyond ISIS
Spicy food may lower risk of early death: study
SnyderTalk Comment: And it tastes good to boot. It’s the best of both worlds.
Food that Could up the Risk of Depression: Study
Israeli nuclear whistleblower fights 11-year travel ban
Greek Forces to Train in Israel as Syriza-Led Government Deepens Alliance
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US suspects Russia in hack of Pentagon computer network
Quds Force commander Soleimani visited Moscow, met Russian leaders in defiance of sanctions
Netanyahu’s duty is to thwart Iran, not applaud Obama
The Iran deal and moral contemptibility
Victims of terror attacks sue US to keep Iran sanctions in place
Major Jewish Group Announces Opposition to Iran Deal: Alternative is Not War
Washington Institute: Send Israel Massive Ordnance Penetrators to Deter Iran
Deadly suicide blast strikes Saudi security forces at mosque near Yemen
Russian companies willing to participate in Egypt’s economic projects
Nasa signs $490 million contract with Russia for ISS travel
Iran Deal Didn’t Trigger the Middle East Arms Race
Revealed: Why the Middle East Is Headed Towards a Lethal Missile Race
France cancels sale of warships to Russia, pays Moscow back
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Exodus 18
1 Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, how Yahweh had brought Israel out of Egypt. 2 Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Moses’ wife Zipporah, after he had sent her away, 3 and her two sons, of whom one was named Gershom, for Moses said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.” 4 The other was named Eliezer, for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.”
SnyderTalk Comment: Read His Name is Yahweh.
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His Name is Yahweh explains why the Name of God, Yahweh, is so important. It’s available in eBook format and in paperback. It’s also available for free in PDF format.
- God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This [Yahweh] is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” (Exodus 3: 15)
- “Therefore behold, I am going to make them know—this time I will make them know My power and My might; and they shall know that My name is Yahweh.” (Jeremiah 16: 21)
- “Behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘Yahweh our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23: 5-6)
- Yeshua said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” (John 8: 58)
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Is it legalistic to pay too much attention to God’s Name?
Click here to download the entire audio presentation for free and with no strings attached. Share it as often as you want.
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Blessings in the Book of Revelation is a book that you need to read, especially now. There are blessings throughout the Scriptures but Revelation is the only book in the Bible actually containing a specific blessing for reading it. It’s repeated twice, once at the beginning and again at the end. This is the reason that I believe Revelation should be the first step toward studying biblical prophecy. Though not easy to do, Revelation can be broken down and understood by anyone, not just the academic elite. So, Revelation’s blessings are for everyone. Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
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Other Books by Neil Snyder
- Stand! is a suspense novel that exposes the lies, corruption, and greed underlying the theory that man-made CO2 emissions are responsible for global warming. Professor Wes Carlyle and Karen Sterling, his research collaborator, carefully scan the audience for their would-be attacker—a member of the enviro-gestapo who has been following them for days. Wes spots his man in the back of the room leaning against the wall. Suddenly, another man in the audience steps forward and moves toward Karen at a menacing pace. With a vicious stroke, he swings a billy club at her head. Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
- What Will You Do with the Rest of Your Life? deals with a question that every Christian has to consider: what should I do with my life? Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
- Falsely Accused is a true story about a young woman who was accused of committing a double homicide. It’s about a travesty of justice, and it reveals Yahweh intervening in the life of a believer to rescue her from danger in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Everyone will enjoy the book, but young people in particular need to read it because the mistakes made that led to the problem could have been avoided. They were the kinds of mistakes that young people are prone to make. As they say, forewarned is forearmed. Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
See “His Name is Yahweh”.
