Rabbi’s Reflections – Sunday, December 4, 2022
Shavuah Tov *|FNAME|*,
Biblical Perspective of Current News (Part of November 2022)
by Dr. Raymond Finney
INTRODUCTION: Countless news reports and commentaries published in November, 2022 continue the warning to persons prepared to hear and understand God’s prophetic Word– the end of the Age of Grace is drawing to a close. There is nothing we can do to influence this end. The Apostle Paul taught that the end is our “blessed hope” (Titus 2:13): We wait for the blessed hope and appearance of the glory of our great God and Savior, Messiah Yeshua.
Why would we want to interfere with God’s plan, if we believe our blessed hope awaits us? We should never bemoan the fact that we cannot influence the end. Rather, we should be thankful that:
● God has known these things from the beginning of time;
● God has loved us enough that He sent His prophets to warn us;
● God is in control; and
● We serve the true God (no other eschatological writings so clearly, flawlessly prophesy the future as does prophecy contained in the Holy Bible).
A small sample of articles and commentaries I read this month include:
►TITLE (DATE): Abortion and the 2022 Elections (November 18, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.realclearwire.com/articles/2022/11/18/abortion_and_the_2022_elections_148492.html ): Real Clear Wire ( Abortion and the 2022 Elections | RealClearWire )
● SUMMARY: Across the ideological spectrum, there was agreement on abortion and the elections. “Support for abortion rights now appears to be one of the big reasons Democrats defied history and staved off deep midterm losses,” stated the New York Times. The Wall Street Journal declared that “For many voters, support for legalized abortion changed the election from a referendum on Democratic control of Washington into more of a choice between the two parties.” And according to The American Spectator, the “issue of abortion played a significant role in the underperformance of Republicans in the midterm elections.”
● SIGNIFICANCE: If these (and other) media analyses are correct, the mid-term elections were more than referenda on who would serve in and control Congress. The elections took the spiritual temperature of the nation, and found that killing unborn babies is the enthusiastic will of millions of Americans. Personally, I find this will of the people abhorrent. More importantly, what does Adonai feel about Americans’ obsession with killing little babies? Adonai judges nations, and He may bless or curse a nation because of attitudes of the people.
►TITLE (DATE): Potential case of deadly Ebola being investigated by UK health officials after hospital clinic ‘locked down’ (November 17, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.thesun.co.uk/health/20448183/suspected-case-deadly-ebola-investigated-uk/ ): The Sun ( Potential case of deadly Ebola being investigated by UK health officials after hospital clinic ‘locked down’ | The Sun )
● SUMMARY: A possible case of Ebola is being investigated by United Kingdom health officials (Colchester Hospital in Essex). A patient, there, apparently raised concerns after developing viral symptoms and revealing his/her recent travel to Uganda. Uganda is currently in the grip of an Ebola outbreak which has caused 141 cases and 55 deaths since September 20.
● SIGNIFICANCE: This article is only a preliminary, precautionary report. Further study is needed to determine if Ebola virus disease (EVD) has spread to the United Kingdom. EVD is a most frightening infection, which has been mostly limited to the tropics. The “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” are introduced in Revelation, chapter 6, and include pandemics. Ebola virus would be an ideal infectious agent to plague humankind with a rapidly spreading, lethal, horrifying infection.
►TITLE (DATE): Will An Economic Pearl Harbor Destroy America?
● SOURCE (http://www.end-times-bible-prophecy.com/will-an-economic-pearl-harbor-destroy-america.html ): End Times Bible Prophecy ( Will An Economic Pearl Harbor Destroy America? (end-times-bible-prophecy.com) )
● SUMMARY: On December 7, 1941, Japan caught America by surprise when it attacked the U.S. naval base in Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Hawaii. Japan sought to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Fortunately, that attack did not destroy the United States. The future may not be so kind, however. Why? The United States is setting herself up for a modern day Pearl Harbor– one from which she will never recover. This destruction will not be the result of a military strike, but will be the result of an economic one. To understand what is coming (actually, this attack is already underway), we need to understand our history.
● SIGNIFICANCE: The United States’ financial system is precarious and built on a flimsy “deck of cards.” The system may well collapse soon from over-spending and lack of restraints and balances. The government buys votes by giving “stuff” to various groups, having little concern about how this “stuff” is paid for. Only an extreme optimist feels good for the future of America. A nation may be destroyed by several means, and financial collapse is only one means. Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do about it. The Believer needs to remember the United States is not a Believer’s home; his/her home is in Heaven (Philippians 3:20-21): For our citizenship is in heaven, and from there we eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Yeshua the Messiah. He will transform this humble body of ours into the likeness of His glorious body, through the power that enables Him even to put all things in subjection to Himself.
►TITLE (DATE): The recipe for gratitude is simple. Try this. (November 17, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.christianpost.com/voices/the-recipe-for-gratitude-is-simple-try-this.html ): Christian Post ( The recipe for gratitude is simple. Try this. | Voice (christianpost.com) )
● SUMMARY: Depending on the time of day you are reading this article, you have probably engaged in a certain exchange several times.
● SIGNIFICANCE: Well-known pastor-evangelist Dr. David Jeremiah discusses the importance of gratitude and giving thanks.
►TITLE (DATE): Top Democrat Chuck Schumer says we should welcome more migrants because the population is ‘not reproducing on its own’ – and wants amnesty for 11 million migrants (November 16, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11436431/Schumer-wants-amnesty-11-million-migrants.html ): Daily Mail ( Schumer wants amnesty for 11 million migrants | Daily Mail Online )
● SUMMARY: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer made a fresh pitch for amnesty, when he claimed the United States is “short of workers” and Congress must pass a “path to citizenship” for “however many undocumented there are here. We’re short of workers; we have a population that is not reproducing on its own with the same level that it used to,” the New York Democrat reasoned.
● SIGNIFICANCE: There is no stronger advocate for abortion than Senator Schumer. It is unbelievable that he would whine, “We’re short of workers, we have a population that is not reproducing on its own with the same level that it used to.” Could the fact that the United States has aborted more than 63-million babies since the 1973 Roe vs Wade decision have anything to do with causing a worker shortage? Many of these aborted babies would have reached adulthood by 2022 and would be in today’s work force.
►TITLE (DATE): Senate advances bill to protect same-sex and interracial marriage: Biden says ‘love is love’ as 12 Republicans including Mitt Romney and Roy Blunt vote with all Democrats to overcome first hurdle (November 16, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11436651/Senate-takes-step-protect-sex-interracial-marriage.html ): Daily Mail ( Senate takes step to protect same-sex and interracial marriage | Daily Mail Online )
● SUMMARY: The U.S. Senate passed a procedural hurdle to end debate on the Respect for Marriage Act, a House-passed bill that would enshrine same-sex marriage rights into law.
● SIGNIFICANCE: Not that the Congress cares what God’s Word says, but the Bible clearly defines marriage (for example, Matthew 19:4-6): “Haven’t you read?” [Yeshua] answered. “He who created them from the beginning ‘made them male and female’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no man separate.” See also: Fact-Checking 7 Claims by Defenders of Democrats’ Same-Sex Marriage Bill, The Daily Signal, November 17, 2022, Fact-Checking 7 Claims by Defenders of Democrats’ Same-Sex Marriage Bill (dailysignal.com) .
►TITLE (DATE): Joe Biden and Pope Francis Call for a New World Order (November 16, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://pastormiketaylor.blogspot.com/2022/11/joe-biden-and-pope-francis-calls-for.html ): Church of the Living God ( CHURCH OF THE LIVING GOD: JOE BIDEN AND POPE FRANCIS CALLS FOR A NEW WORLD ORDER (pastormiketaylor.blogspot.com) )
● SUMMARY: Pastor Mike Taylor explores the roles of two leaders– President Joe Biden of the United States and Pope Francis of the Roman Catholic Church– in facilitating and accelerating the coming New World Order.
● SIGNIFICANCE: The New World Order has been prophesied in the Holy Bible, and the foundation for this Order is being laid at the present time.
►TITLE (DATE): Is America at the End of the Road? (November 15, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/https/jonathan-brentner-g8fgsquarespacecom/config/2022/11/15/is-america-at-the-end-of-the-road ): jonathanbrentner.com ( Is America at the End of the Road? — Jonathan Brentner )
● SUMMARY: Is America near the end of the road as a nation? Have we reached a place similar to that of Judah just before Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the temple? Three times in the book of Jeremiah, the Lord tells the prophet to not pray for the people of Judah (Jeremiah 7:16, 11:14, 14:11). God’s judgment on the nation was certain at this point; praying would not change the final outcome. Can we apply Jeremiah’s words to the U.S. as well? I believe we can.
● SIGNIFICANCE: Even the casual student of prophecy has asked the same question: Where is America in end-time prophecy? A nation as prominent as America should be strongly proclaimed in prophecy, but the student must be creative to find America. One of two conclusions seems plausible: Bible prophecy is not what it seems to be, if God did not know about America; or, America is destroyed or so irrelevant in the last days that this nation matters no more in the international scheme than, say, Bangladesh. Have “God’s people, over whom His Name is called,” become so reprobate that God has deserted them (2 Chronicles 7:14)? God issued a warning as far back as Noah’s time that His spirit would not always strive with man (Genesis 6:1-3). If America has lost favor with God, it is time to rescue yourself, your family, and your neighbors.
►TITLE (DATE): A Nation Hangs in the Balance – What Can We Learn? (November 13, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://shaneidleman.com/2022/11/13/a-nation-hangs-in-the-balance-what-can-we-learn/?utm_source=ChristianPost&utm_medium=NativeAd&utm_campaign=Standard ): Westside Christian Fellowship – shaneidleman.com ( A Nation Hangs in the Balance — What Can We Learn? – Shane Idleman )
● SUMMARY: Even in the midst of unbelievable crime, enormous border and security issues, spending like a drunken sailor on furlough, and the approval of transgender agendas and sexual perversion being slammed down our throats, it’s crystal clear that America has jumped into the cesspool of moral filth and enjoys it. We truly have been weighed in the balances and found wanting.
● SIGNIFICANCE: This article reviews the implications of the mid-term elections and the status we Americans now find ourselves.
►TITLE (DATE): Jeff Bezos is giving Dolly Parton $100 million to donate to charities of her choice (November 13, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-is-giving-dolly-parton-100-million-to-donate-2022-11 ): Business Insider ( Jeff Bezos Is Giving Dolly Parton $100 Million to Donate to Charity (businessinsider.com) )
● SUMMARY: Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, is giving Dolly Parton 100-million dollars to donate to a charity of her choice as a part of receiving his Courage and Civility award.
● SIGNIFICANCE: This report has no prophetic significance, but it should be of interest to local residents. Sevier County’s Dolly has been generous to residents of her community, including the Imagination Library funded by her Dollywood Foundation. Bezos cited Dolly for “giving with her heart” and helping to improve literacy in Southern Appalachian children.
►TITLE (DATE): What Is Satan’s Five-Part Plan to Destroy America? (November 12, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.raptureready.com/2022/11/12/what-is-satans-five-part-plan-to-destroy-america-by-nathan-jones/): Rapture Ready ( What Is Satan’s Five-Part Plan to Destroy America? :: By Nathan Jones – Rapture Ready )
● SUMMARY: Our nation is under attack! Jarring social changes and frightening geopolitical events pummel our sensibilities like waves endlessly breaking upon the shore. Life’s been getting a whole lot crazier with each passing year. What exactly is going on behind the scenes that’s causing so much confusion? Satan has a five-part plan to disrupt and destroy the United States of America and other Western societies.
● SIGNIFICANCE: Can America be found in end-time prophecy? Maybe, maybe not. Some prophecy students maintain that America must fall in order that the Antichrist’s regime can rise. Author Nathan Jones discusses five reasons America may be in the process of being destroyed.
►TITLE (DATE): U.N. votes to take Israeli ‘occupation’ of Palestine to Hague international court (November 12, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.wnd.com/2022/11/u-n-votes-take-israeli-occupation-palestine-hague-international-court/?ff_source=Email&ff_medium=wnd-breaking&ff_campaign=breaking&ff_content=breaking ): WorldNetDaily ( U.N. votes to take Israeli ‘occupation’ of Palestine to Hague international court (wnd.com) )
● SUMMARY: The U.N. General Assembly voted 98-17 to seek an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the illegality of Israel’s “occupation” of Palestinian territories on the grounds that it can be considered de-facto annexation. The resolution specifically asked the ICJ for an opinion on the status of Jerusalem, which is one of the most volatile and contentious points of discord between Israelis and Palestinians.
● SIGNIFICANCE: Several end-time issues are in play in this U.N. action: (1) In the last days, all nations of the world (including the United States and the United Nations) will turn against Israel. We now see this hatred of Israel developing. By the time of the War of Gog and Magog (Ezekiel, chapters 38 and 39), Israel will not be able to find a single international ally to protect her against a blatant, unprovoked attack by multiple nations. (2) I believe the globalist government of the Antichrist (Unholy Trinity) may appropriate an existing globalist institution, and the United Nations is a prime suspect. All that will be necessary is changing names on buildings and stationery and hoisting a different flag. Much of the staff seems to be anti-Israel and pro-Palestine at the present time. (3) Adonai promised much more land to the Jews than is presently occupied by the nation of Israel. Of course this would not stand up in a modern court, but Adonai promised a large swath of land to Abraham’s descendants, extending between the Nile and Euphrates Rivers (see Genesis 15:18 and Joshua 1:4). (4) Jerusalem has been God’s city, home of His Covenant People, the Jews, for thousands of years (long before Muhammad was even born and created Islam). (5) The Palestinians are lately-come invaders of Israel. It is the Palestinian Arabs who “occupied” Israel, not the reverse situation. (6) Present-day Israel was desolate, swampy, wasteland in the nineteenth century– a neglected possession of the Ottoman Empire. After World War I ended (1918) and especially after World War II ended, with the creation of Israel by the United Nations (1948), the miracle of Israel’s rebirth occurred. Although Arabs contributed to the growth of modern Israel, the miracle of Israel’s rebirth was not primarily due to Palestinian Arabs. (7) Who knows what decision the Hague International Court will render? Courts, whether international or American, seem to roll the dice and try to please various constituencies, rather than strictly apply the law.
►TITLE (DATE): Why Do So Many Christians Deny the Deadly Intent Behind the Globalists’ Agenda? (November 11, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/https/jonathan-brentner-g8fgsquarespacecom/config/2022/11/11/conspiracy-theories-or-spoiler-alerts ): jonathanbrentner.com ( Why Do So Many Christians Deny The Deadly Intent Behind The Globalists’ Agenda? — Jonathan Brentner )
● SUMMARY: Evil people have always conspired against the righteous. We see this in the words of David in Psalm 37:12. Why, then, do the majority of people doubt that this happens today? Why do so many Believers deny that there’s a deadly intent in the agenda of the globalists?
● SIGNIFICANCE: Naive Americans view politics as Democrats versus Republicans or liberals versus conservatives. On September 19, 1796, retiring President George Washington published his Farewell Address to the American people. He warned in strongest terms against forming political parties. Other founders also considered parties to be the bane of republican (little “r”) government. Parties were factions that threatened to divide the electorate into competing groups, might disrupt the separation of powers, might threaten to stand in the way of effective representation, with elected officials tempted to represent only fellow party members, and to leave opposition groups without a voice in government. Our nation’s constitutional framers did not want parties participating in American politics. Instead, the founders desired to create a nonpartisan political system. Man’s greed prevailed, and we formed political parties. Would America be better, if our government were nonpartisan? Americans’ true concerns should not be which political party has more seats in Congress. Such concerns buy into the idiocy being breathlessly reported by the news media. But, our political chaos pales in comparison to the chaos that is coming. Americans should be concerned about the globalists, not Democrats or Republicans. It is difficult to define who these powerful globalist elitists are, but they are working behind the scenes to destroy democratic/ republican (small letters) governments– including America’s government– and replace all with a one-world government. This global government is prophesied in The Revelation as the government of the Unholy Trinity (Antichrist, False Prophet, and Satan), which will be prominent during the Tribulation. In this commentary, Jonathan Brentner outlines some of the changes now occurring, which will usher in the one-world government. Global changes are happening rapidly, and there is a purpose for these changes. Do not be caught unaware.
►TITLE (DATE): Building Back Babel (November 11, 2022)
● SOURCE (https://www.rev310.net/post/building-back-babel ): rev310.net ( Building Back Babel (rev310.net) )
● SUMMARY: The authors trace Nimrod’s blasphemous building of the tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1ff) to the present, with Satan now building his “Babel” to once again challenge and attempt to become equal with God.
● SIGNIFICANCE: The authors summarize Satan’s present attempts to build his “Babel,” and every Believer needs to be aware of his six steps:
□ Globalization via regionalization: The world continues to embrace globalization through institutions like the United Nations, World Economic Forum, and about thirty other transnational organizations (see Revelation13:7).
□ Global currency: The world continues to march toward a single world currency most likely because the current global reserve currency (the US Dollar) collapses (see Revelation 13:16-18).
□ Global religion: The world moves toward a single world religion through the UN, the Vatican, and dozens of transnational interfaith and ecumenical organizations (see Revelation 13:4, 8, 15).
□ Antisemitism: The rising global animosity towards the nation of Israel is demonic in nature, and is close to reaching a fever pitch; (see Zechariah 12:2-3, 14:1-2; Matthew 24:15-22; Revelation 12, 16:12-16).
□ Apostasy: Satan is fully invested in trying to corrupt the Church. Thus, we see the state of modern Christendom apostatizing under the corrupting influence of the world and its hopeless addiction to this present darkness (see Matthew 24:4, 11, 24; 2 Peter 2-3; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; Jude; Revelation 3:14-18, 13:17).
□ The global leader: The popularity of celebrity leaders and the rise of a single world leader after the rapture of Believers, as we have seen numerous times in the past three centuries (Napoleon, Hitler, Mao, Obama, etc.). We are being prepared to embrace it again through the use of mass media and propaganda (see Daniel 8:23-25, 9:27, 11:35-45; Revelation 6:1-2, 13).
CONCLUSION: Keep looking toward the eastern sky. One glorious day, Yeshua Hamashiach will part the clouds (clouds = mass array of white-robed angels?), accompanied by the blast of the trumpet of God and the archangel’s call, “Come up here!” We will, then, be evermore with our Savior. Our “blessed hope” becomes a reality. This blessed event may be close at hand. Keep the faith. Until next Sunday, Shalom and Maranatha.
Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Sun 04-Dec-2022 10th of Kislev, 5783
Ge 32:4-13 1 Sa 8-9 Ps 51 Mk 8 (1 Co 4)