Quote: ""If Israel does not halt this plan, the Palestinian National Authority will ask the World Bank to stop the two-seas project, linking the Red Sea with the Dead Sea," said a Cabinet statement issued by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's office.

When my grandfather visited Israel some 25 years ago, an Israeli MK was explaining to his group how Israel was planning to construct a canal linking the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. They had all the money to build it and were planning to start construction the following year. But the Christian tour guide told the group he believed it would never happen. And it never did. The next year inflation went up and the plan was subsequently shelved. This latest canal project has also faced similar problems. It has been opposed on scientific grounds, over concerns that an earthquake could break the pipes and flood fertile farmland with deadly, salinated water. The Jordanian government has also objected to it on political grounds, fearing that a joint project with the Palestinians could result in Hamas gaining a foothold on their border. And now the Palestinian Authority are preparing to scupper the project over the settlement issue. And that may be the final nail in the coffin for this two-seas project. The truth of the matter is, the plan will never be realized, because the Bible states that this will only happen when Christ returns. As we have been thinking of late, when the Lord Jesus Christ returns to the Mount of Olives at the end of the great tribulation period, an earthquake is prophesied to split the mountain in two. And living waters from beneath the Temple Mount will flow out of Jerusalem, and towards the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea, and these waters shall be healed (Zechariah 14, Ezekiel 47). Geologists have now discovered massive reservoirs of water underneath Jerusalem and the surrounding area. It is believed that an earthquake in the Jordan Valley Transform could be the trigger that releases this water, which will flow down from Jerusalem - 2500 feet above sea level, to the Dead Sea - some 700 feet below sea level. You have seen for yourself how accurate the Bible is when it comes to predicting future events. That's because it was written by someone who knows the end from the beginning (Revelation 1:8). The fact that the Lord must come before the Dead Sea disappears completely shows us just how close we may be to His return. The question is, are you ready to meet Him? The Bible says that living waters will one day flow out of the rock at Jerusalem. But greater than that, the Lord has promised that living waters can flow out of your inward parts, when you trust in Him for salvation. Why don't you trust in Him for salvation today.

John 4:13-14
Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

Revelation 21:6
And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.

Source Jordan Times, Abbas Watchman

Quote: "Rabbi Riskin: “I once spoke before a very large ICEJ convention in Jerusalem, and I told them: 'I think I know your theology pretty well, and I think it is this: Right now, you're not out to proselytize Jews. Right now, you believe we should be good Jews, and come to Israel to live, and then there will be what you call Armageddon – a war of Jews and Christians versus the Moslems. The Jews and Christians will win, then there will be a resurrection of the dead, and then you believe that all the Jews will be converted to Christianity. I told them that of course I clearly can't accept this, but in any event, it will be a few hundred years before this all happens, and so in the meantime, since you're not out to convert us now, we need all the friends we can get.' They all applauded with great enthusiasm. "'However,' I continued, 'I want to emphasize this: Our sources say that Redemption will follow Repentance. Yes, there will be a Resurrection of the Dead, and Jesus may very well be among those who will be resurrected; he was basically a religious Jew. But when he wakes up, he'll look around and ask, 'What's this Sunday business – the Sabbath is on Saturday! And what's this Easter stuff – it should be a regular Passover seder! And why are you eating bacon and eggs, when the Torah forbids pig meat?' And so what will happen is that there will be conversion – but in the other direction.' This time, there was no applause – just silence." In conclusion, Rabbi Riskin said, “I will not cooperate with any Christian group or person that I learn is taking active steps to proselytize Jews. But I can say that in any event, what I'm seeing is the opposite; I don't see that the groups that I'm dealing with are converting Jews, but rather many of them are coming close to keeping more of the Torah. I truly think that when we look at the extent of that phenomenon, it seems that these truly are times of the Messiah."

The Rabbi's views of Christian theology are of course somewhat skewed. I believe it comes from their misconception, that during the tribulation period Christians are to invade the land of Israel and forcibly convert all the Jews to Christianity. This will not happen. Perhaps this belief stems from the verses in Revelation that talk of the 144,000 Jewish believers (Revelation 7, 14), and the idea of Jesus Christ coming back to reign in Jerusalem. Perhaps it stems from Paul's statement in Romans 11 that all Israel will be saved. The Bible declares that it will be the nation itself that will turn to Jesus Christ for salvation, when they look on the One whom they pierced (Zechariah 12:10). To many Orthodox Jews, Christianity is a Gentile 'religion', and you can't be a Jew if you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. Unfortunately they don't understand their own Scriptures, which prophesied of the Messiah's coming (Isaiah 7:14, 9:16, Micah 5:2), of His sacrifice for sin (Isaiah 53, Psalm 22, Zechariah 9), and His Second Coming to this earth (Psalm 2, Zechariah 14). They don't understand that Jesus never came to start a new religion. He said in Matthew 5:17, "Think not that I am not come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil". As I have been reading of late, many Orthodox Jews don't even have their own Bible. They study commentaries such as the Talmud and Mishnah, but the Bible is simply recited every Shabbat at the synagogue. Many Jews don't even understand what they are reading. They talk of keeping the Torah, but ignore the one of whom it speaks (John 5:39). Like in Catholicism, the Rabbi is the only one authorized to give the proper interpretation of the Scriptures, and thus many ordinary Jews have not even studied the Bible for themselves. They are kept in darkness. If Christians are not out to 'proselytise' Jews, if they are not interested in making them aware of their own Messiah and their need for the forgiveness of sins, there is something seriously wrong. Paul said the Gospel is to the Jew first (Romans 1:16). There is no dual covenant. Despite Israel being judicially blinded to the identity of the Messiah so the Gospel could be preached to the Gentiles (Romans 11:25), individual Jews who do not trust in the Messiah for salvation will still perish. We Christians, who have the great privilege of knowing the Messiah, have a great responsibility towards the Jewish people. Many Jews remain in spiritual darkness simply because we Gentile believers have not had the courage to speak up. We think to ourselves, they have their own religion and its not up to us to interfere. That kind of thinking is from the devil. It's not about religion, it's about a living relationship with the Messiah (John 1:12). Do you know a Jewish man or woman who is still in spiritual darkness? They may be just waiting for someone to show them the way. Do you know of a Jewish man or woman who would like a Bible? The Society for the Distribution of the Hebrew Scriptures provides Hebrew Bibles free of charge for Jewish people. Do you have a personal relationship with the Messiah? If not then the Hebrew Scriptures declare that there is salvation for you in Christ Jesus. Trust in Him for salvation today.

Isaiah 49:6
And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

Source Arutz 7

Quote: "The new discoveries could therefore save Israel from serious natural gas shortages beginning in 2012 and the continued use of dirtier fuel sources while building, at great cost, the infrastructure needed in order to import liquefied natural gas. They could save Israel from depending on British Gas, the Palestinian Authority and Egypt, with their associated political, military and economic implications.

So what has all this got to do with end time prophecy? Israel's position in the Millennial Kingdom, in which the Jewish state will become the head and not the tail of the nations, and will lend to many nations and not borrow (Deuteronomy 15:6), seems to indicate that the land of Israel is rich in natural resources. God describes it in Exodus 3:8 as "a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey". Not only that, but the Bible states that oil will be discovered in Israel. A few days ago I pointed out how end time prophecies concerning the tribe of Judah are being played out before our very eyes, through the disengagement from Gaza, along with efforts to establish a Palestinian state in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Today we are looking at another one of the twelve tribes of Israel. Once again I have taken a map of Israel, and drawn an outline around the areas that were inhabited by each of the tribes. I have imposed this on a modern map of Israel. This time we are looking at the tribe of Asher, which dwelled in the north west region of Israel, around the city of Haifa. As you can see, Haifa is located on the 'toe' of Asher. Haifa happens to be Israel's industrial heartland, and it is also where these recent gas deposits have been discovered. These were the words of Moses, that he prophesied over the tribe of Asher, before they entered the promised land.

Deuteronomy 33:24
And of Asher he said, Let Asher be blessed with children; let him be acceptable to his brethren, and let him dip his foot in oil.

Shortly before he died, Jacob called his twelve sons together, to give them his patriarchal blessing. He also spoke a prophecy over each one of them, the fulfillment of which can be traced throughout the entire Scriptures, and which continues to this very day (Genesis 49:1). When Jacob began his blessing, he said to his sons, "Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days", Genesis 49:1. Some wonder why Jacob never got round to telling his sons what would befall Israel in the last days. Jewish rabbis teach that Jacob both did and didn't get round to telling his sons what would befall them in the last days. He did not mention any of those things which we would normally associate with the time of Jacob's trouble (Jeremiah 30:7). But Jacob's prophecy concerning the tribe of Judah represents a clear picture of one who was coming, who was manifest in these last times for us (1st Peter 1:20).

Genesis 49:22-26
Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:) Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb: The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.

Looking at the prophecies of Judah, it is clear that the one who is being spoken of here is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. He was the one that the archers sorely grieved, when He gave His life for us upon the cross of Calvary (Psalm 22). He is the Shepherd of Israel, the Good Shepherd that would give His life for the sheep (John 10:9). He was the Stone that the builders of the nation rejected, and the same is become the chief corner stone (Luke 20:17). He was the one who was separate from His brethren, in that He was without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Do you know Him? Have you trusted Him as your Saviour? He bore God's punishment for your sins when He died upon the cross (John 3:16). And all who believe in Him can know their sins forgiven (Acts 13:38-39). Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved (Acts 16:31).

Source Haaretz, The Inner Circle

Next week the Israeli Air Force is to close its base at Lod in central Israel, and relocate to a new site at Nevatim in the Negev desert. The new base cost around $421 million dollars to complete, and boasts the longest airstrip in the Middle East, allowing plenty of room for manoeuvre for Israeli pilots. Part of the reason for the relocation is to improve the environment around Lod airport. The move will also improve the economy of the Negev, which President Shimon Peres is looking to develop as an alternative to settling Judea and Samaria. Peres believes that Israel's future lies in the desert, and if the Israeli government can conclude a peace deal with the Palestinian Authority, the Negev may have to become home for hundreds of thousands of Israelis. The length of the airstrip makes it ideal for carrying out emergency operations, and Hercules aircraft and Boeing 707s which are used for transportation and in-flight refuelling are stationed at the base. Israeli President Shimon Peres, Defence Minister Ehud Barak and IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi are to attend the inauguration of the new base next week.    

Quote: "The Israel Air Force's new infrastructure in the base will advance and improve its heavy cargo and transportation capabilities. During the aerial transfer next week IAF Commander Major-General Ido Nechushtan will lead a salute flight in which cargo planes will fly over Negev and Gaza Belt communities.

It is extremely interesting that such a base should be nearing completion at this time, just as the Israelis and Palestinians are coming closer to an agreement. And it is extremely interesting that this base should be located in the desert, and that it should specialize in transportation and emergency operations. And it is extremely interesting that the Negev has been chosen as the ideal place for the relocation of hundreds of thousands of Israelis who may lose their homes following the disengagement from Judea and Samaria. For the book of Revelation states that during the tribulation period, following the recapturing of Judea and east Jerusalem by the Gentile nations (Zechariah 12:2, Revelation 11:2), God will miraculously intervene to deliver his people from the hand of their enemies. In the book of the Revelation the Apostle John sees the woman, who is symbolic of the nation of Israel, as being given two wings as of a great eagle. These wings carry her into the wilderness, where she is protected from the Satanic onslaught for a period of three and a half years. Could this new base be preparation for this event, in which hundreds of thousands of Israelis will need to be airlifted into the Negev to flee from their Islamic persecutors? Could this 'salute flight', in which dozens of cargo planes will fly over the Negev and Gaza Belt communities, be prophetic of something that will happen for real at a later date? I think it is entirely possible.

It certainly is interesting days. We are seeing Bible prophecy being fulfilled at an astounding rate. Things that were once the sole subject of prophecy meetings are now being openly discussed in the news media today. The fact that we are seeing things coming to pass only proves how close we are to Jesus Christ's return. Are you prepared to meet Him? Jesus Christ is coming again (John 14:3). The Bible declares that everybody has sinned and fallen short of God's standard (Romans 3:23). If we die without having our sins forgiven, God says that where He is, there we cannot come (John 8:24). If we ever intend to be in heaven we must have our sins forgiven. Living a good life is not enough. All our good works are like filthy rags to God (Isaiah 64:6). Being religious is not enough. Even Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews did not meet God's standard (John 3:3). We need to be born again. Being born again means being born into God's family through His Holy Spirit. How are we born again? By turning away from our sins and by believing on Jesus Christ for salvation. Jesus Christ took God's punishment for our sins upon the cross. All who believe on Him for salvation have everlasting life (John 3:16). Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation today.

Revelation 12:14
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

Source Arutz 7