Watching over Zion" (The weekly News Report & Prayer Update)
Compiled by David Soakell Tel: 01642 469663
E-mail david@cfi.org.uk Website: www.cfi.org.uk
~ Thursday 20th October 2011 ~

The Word: Since you are precious and honoured in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life. (Isaiah 43:4)

The LORD is my light and my salvation-- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident. One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD. (Psalm 27: 1-6)

• Pointers for prayer: Traditionally, Psalm 27 is recited at the service of the Feast of Tabernacles. As we come before the throne of grace as this time of Tabernacles draws to a close, may we boldly approach the Lord for His blessing upon the nation of Israel.

• As David Dolan tours the UK over these next few weeks, please do uphold all who are involved with this. Pray for safety, a good response and for the Church to be awakened to the whole issue relating to Israel. The on-going conflict in the Land of Israel has done terrible damage to the relationships of both Jew and Arab, especially amongst the younger generation. Please continue to pray that ordinary Jewish and Arab people will have a desire for reconciliation and to live side by side in peace and harmony.

• Winston Churchill once said at the end of the Second World War, “We may allow ourselves a brief time of rejoicing; but let us not forget for a moment the toil and efforts that lie ahead.” Let us indeed allow ourselves a time to rejoice with Gilad Shalit’s parents on the safe return of their son. However let us not forget the great cost that comes with this, and pray for the families of all those Jewish people who have grieved the loss of their parents, children and grandchildren at the hands of many of the terrorists now being freed in this Israel/Hamas deal.

• As mentioned in earlier reports, the future months ahead in Israel are very uncertain. However following the ‘Arab Spring’ otherwise known as the ‘Islamic awakening’, one thing is for certain ~ the battle ahead could take its toll. In these ‘end days’, if we as Believers standing with Israel are not equipped, i.e. trusting in God's Word, and being covered by His arm of protection, we will surely fall. Israel too, needs to recognize their place in God. May this be our prayer as we continue to uphold the people of Israel before the LORD.
Being covered by His Tabernacle By the time you read this report, the Feast of Tabernacles (outlined in Leviticus 23: 33-43) will be drawing to a close (it started on 12th October through to Thursday evening, 20th October). For Israel and the Jewish people, this seven-day festival commemorates the years that the Jews spent in the desert on their way to the Promised Land - Israel, and celebrates the way in which God protected them under difficult desert conditions. The Feast of Tabernacles is also known as Sukkoth or the Feast of Booths. The word Sukkoth means huts (some translations of the bible use the word booths), and building a hut is the most obvious way in which Jews celebrate the festival. A number of Christians also join in with this festival as witnessed every year in the International Christian Embassy’s celebration in Jerusalem. Some Christians actually believe that this is the time of Christ’s birth when Jesus (Yeshua) came to “tabernacle among us.” If so, he might have been conceived around Chanukah/Christmas ~ the light of the world!

Chanukah of course means ‘festival of lights’. Yeshua is the Light of the world. Add nine months from Chanukah and you are close to the Feast of Tabernacles [Remember, our Gregorian calendar is different to the Jewish calendar. Tabernacles can fall late September to early October]. Yeshua is also called Emmanuel (God is with us) in Scripture, and so if the Messiah, Yeshua, was born during this “Holy Day” period, then it brings out a fascinating thought. Just as the booths represented temporary dwelling places, the Messiah was made manifest in a temporary dwelling (His earthly body) as He came to tabernacle among us (John 1:14). The symbolism of Tabernacles may ultimately be fulfilled when He returns at His second coming to again tabernacle among us as King of Kings and millennial ruler from Jerusalem, to finally provide a "Sabbath Rest" for all mankind and the earth. The Feast of Tabernacles could therefore be a culmination of God’s purposes in time and space to unite all things back under the Sovereignty of God and His anointed King.

Tabernacle with us – the Millennium tour The word ‘Millennium’ of course is part of the title of the latest novel by David Dolan – ‘Millennium, The Lord Reigns’ (http://www.cfi.org.uk/shop/productinfo.php?product=1081). The book, a sequel to the best-selling novel 'End of Days', is an awesome and inspiring imagining of the Lord’s majestic millennial reign which takes many of its characters into a future thousand year reign of Yeshua the Messiah from his glorious throne in Jerusalem. Set mainly in Israel’s Holy City, along with the Greek Isles and United States, it vividly portrays the contrast between the redeemed glorified saints-worshipping their Conquering King while also governing the restored world with Him-and the fallen human beings who survive the tribulation upheaval or are born during the Lord's magnificent millennial reign. David Dolan's futuristic prophetic novels are unique in the fact that they were written from his home in Jerusalem, where he has worked as a journalist for 31 years. They also display his intimate knowledge of Jerusalem and Jewish culture gained during that time. Along with this, they combine his "factual" news writing style (as Dolan has worked for CBS, CBN and many others media outlets over the years) with his long-time interest in apocalyptic biblical prophecy. If you are a resident outside of Europe, please purchase this product from David Dolan's website.

For the past year, I have been organising David Dolan’s three week UK tour, which kicked off last Friday and Saturday at the CFI annual conference in Eastbourne, and is currently working its way throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland (please contact CFI for full details). On the tour David looks at the effects of the "Arab Spring" vis-à-vis Israel - particularly in regards to Egypt and Jordan; the diplomatic downturn with Turkey; the ongoing uprising against Assad in Syria; the threat of Hezbollah in Lebanon, as well as Iran's continuing Nuclear programme, all amidst the economic crisis that is crippling the West and is now spreading to the rest of the world. Please do come and ‘tabernacle with us’ by supporting this tour. However, if you can’t get to hear David Dolan on the tour, you can download his talks (or buy the CD’s) from our conference: http://www.cfi.org.uk/shop/productinfo.php?product=1084

At the time of writing last week’s Watching over Zion Report, news was breaking that a deal for the release of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit had been agreed with Hamas. Could it be that at last our prayers were being answered by the glad tidings that Gilad Shalit would be allowed at last to ‘tabernacle’ with his family after more than five years in captivity? Well, many people certainly got excited over this news, and who can blame them… but were we really prepared to accept the huge cost to his release?

Shalit is released On 11th October 2011, the Israeli government held a special meeting where a large majority (26 in favour, three against) voted in favour of the agreement with Hamas for the release of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, held in Hamas captivity without Red Cross visits since June 2006. The agreement was supported by the heads of the Israeli defence establishment, including the Chief of Staff, the head of the Israel Security Agency and the head of the Mossad. This week, as I’m writing this report, Israeli’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is welcoming Shalit back home from captivity and Netanyahu vowed, “We will continue to fight terror. Every terrorist who returns to terror will have a price on his head.” He added, “Gilad has returned home and is back with his family, his people and his country".

After meeting Shalit on the airplane that brought him to the Tel Aviv area Tel Nof base, Netanyahu escorted him to his parents, Noam and Aviva, who have been campaigning for more than five years to bring their son back home, regardless of the price. “All of us are united with happiness and pain,” Prime Minister Netanyahu said. He explained that the decision to free 1,027 terrorists, including dozens serving hundreds of life terms for murder, was very difficult. Netanyahu stated, “I faced the need to bring home someone who was sent to fight for Israel. I always knew that if I and my friends were to fall into captivity, the government and the IDF would do everything they could to return me home. I also faced another need – to minimize as much as possible the dangers to Israel. I achieved two results – to leave some terrorists in jail and to deport terrorists outside of Judea and Samaria. Hamas for years has opposed this deal, but we received signs the past few months that they were ready to agree…When they accepted our basic demands, I had to decide."

Netanyahu also stated, “It is difficult to see terrorists who murdered Israelis freed from prison but this was the best agreement we could achieve. Otherwise, Gilad might disappear and…I did not want his fate to be that of Ron Arad, who fell into captivity 27 years ago."
Following this, Sky News reported an interview with Tony Blair in which Blair stated, “There are Palestinian families now re-united with those who are released, as Palestinian prisoners… and we hope this offers us a moment of opportunity…” What he failed to mention is that these prisoners are terrorists! Following this, Sky News showed a very one sided interview with Palestinian Ambassador to the UK, Professor Manuel Hassassian who left viewers thinking Israel had been wrong for sending these Palestinians to jail in the first place. No one from the Israeli side was interviewed.

The terrorists will be released in two stages: the first stage of 450, plus 27 women terrorists; and the second stage of 550 terrorists, among them are 57 Hamas terrorist operatives; the rest belong to Fatah and other terrorist organizations. As mentioned, among those Arab Palestinians to be freed are 27 women terrorist operatives. These include Amna Muna - the terrorist responsible for the seduction, abduction and murder of Israeli teenager Ofir Rahum, 16, from Ashkelon in 2001, and Ahlam Tamimi, who drove the suicide bomber who blew himself up at the Sbarro restaurant in Jerusalem. The attack killed 15 people. Among those released in the first stage are 279 prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment. Crowds of Gazans, many of them armed, waved Hamas flags to celebrate the release of Palestinian terrorist operatives on Tuesday.

The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) said that even though Shalit was in reasonably good health, there were a few issues that caused concern including his pale skin and the fact that he was limping. The IDF doctors noted that he was very pale which indicates that he was not exposed to sunlight during his captivity. They also noted that he was much skinnier than when he was captured which suggests that he was malnourished. The IDF medical team suspected that the limp was from an injury he had when he was captured in 2006.

World reactions to the release of Gilad Shalit included the British Prime Minister David Cameron claiming: 'Britain will continue to stand by Israel in defeating terrorism' while UN's Ban Ki-Moon believes release will have 'far-reaching positive impact' on peace process. David Cameron said in a statement on Tuesday, "I know that people across Britain will share in the joy and relief felt by Gilad Shalit and his family today, I can only imagine the heartache of the last five years, and I am full of admiration for the courage and fortitude which Sgt Shalit and his family have shown through his long, cruel and unjustified captivity." Cameron went on to congratulate his Israeli counterpart saying: “I congratulate Prime Minister Netanyahu and everyone involved for bringing him home safely, and hope this prisoner exchange will bring peace a step closer.”

Regarding the deal, Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director of Independent Media Review & Analysis stated, “If there are terror attacks after the Shalit deal is completed those who pushed for the deal won’t have remorse. They will either say that terror is inevitable regardless of the deal or that the only way to end terror is to give the Arabs what they want (or both). Some might even criticize the security services for failing to thwart the attacks. And if the attack takes place beyond the Green Line then the victims will be to blame for being there in the first place. And if there are kidnappings then unless the parents of the hostages scream for the heads of the terrorists rather than for PM Netanyahu to release another thousand, there is every reason in the world to expect, once again, a full press by the media for Israel to once again open the prison gates. Is it possible to actually change any of this? Are we locked into a perpetual spiral of concessions? How can Israel respond differently to a post-Shalit terror attack that will give the nation the feeling that we are not in some terrible free fall? How can the next kidnapping be handled so that we are not demoralized?”

So… what will happen next? Only time will tell, however the IDF is on high alert and concerned that new Palestinian violence could break out. And of course these issues will be debated in the weeks ahead, but some are stating that “today is truly a day to rejoice”, but is it? Well for sure, many evangelical Christians around the world have been praying for the Lord to protect Gilad's physical, spiritual and emotional health and praying that the Lord would set him free. We have also been praying for the Lord to comfort and strengthen his family and friends. Today, we are rejoicing with the nation of Israel as we believe God has heard our prayers. However, we're also praying for the protection of all Israelis in the days and months ahead and for wisdom for the Israeli Prime Minister and his security advisors.

Someone ‘face-booked’ me with a passage from Isaiah 43:4 which reads: “Since you are precious and honoured in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life. Well this could well be the case for Shalit. I was also questioned over an article I posted on Facebook this week from Arutz Sheva. The article, including a video http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/148794 [WARNING: The video of the lynch is not suitable for young children] stated, “The horrific pictures that remain in the memories of Jewish families around the world depicts Abdel Aziz Saleh waving his bloody hands from his Ramallah widow after murdering Vadim Nurzhitz and Yossi Avrahami, and mutilating their bodies. Aziz Saleh was arrested in 2001. He and other terrorists threw Israeli Nurzhitz upside down through a second-floor window and tossed Avrahami out the door for an angry crowd to trample their bodies, drag them to a town square and mutilate them.”

Arutz Sheva continued, “Saleh was sentenced to life in prison, but the government did not abide by the law requiring that the survivors be informed of his release, along with 1,026 other terrorists and security prisoners for the return of Gilad Shalit. The brutality of the event, captured in the photo, sparked international outrage. British photographer Mark Seager tried to photograph the event, but the mob assaulted him and destroyed his camera. He later stated, "It was the most horrible thing that I have ever seen and I have reported from Congo, Kosovo, many bad places. It was murder of the most barbaric kind."”

Someone commented to me stating, “But would you want to be the one to tell Gilad Shalit's family that Israel is turning down a chance to bring Gilad home?” My answer was simple, “When my son was two years old we tried to move to Israel. Had we been allowed to do so, my son would be joining the IDF soon. If Shalit was my son, I would want everything possible done for his release. But what if Nurzhitz had been my son instead?

David Soakell

(CFI Church Liaison Officer (UK) & Writer & Producer of the CFI News Report & Prayer Update)

Tweet me @David_at_CFI
Sources: Unless otherwise stated: Personal sources throughout Israel along with The Jerusalem Post,
BBC News, CFI Jerusalem, Arutz-7 News, Israeli Embassy London & Israel National Radio