Today we begin 1st Samuel Chapter 23.

For the Complete Jewish Bible, click HERE.

For the King James version, click HERE.

At this point, David was hiding out in a part of Judah called the Shephelah.

This long shoreline begins at the Mediterranean and spreads eastward until Judah’s foothills ascend.

David had most likely set up fort in the “Forest” or the “Woods” depending on how you want to translate the area.

Now here’s what’s interesting.

Scholars doubt this area ever existed.

Why?

Because for hundreds of years, there was no forest or heavily wooded area to be found in the region.

Okay, so right here, we run smack dab into a God principle we would be remiss to overlook.

God’s Holy Land ONLY PROSPERS when His People are living there.

It’s time for a little history lesson.

The area we’re talking about used to be filled with trees.

However, the trees were all deliberately chopped down when the area came under Muslim rule from the 8th century.

Why?

Because the Caliphate (a form of Islamic government) ordered a tax charged for every tree on the land.

Much of the land was owned by Muslim landlords who didn’t live there and couldn’t care less about how productive the land was or helping the Caliphate make money. 

They ordered the trees to be cut down because no trees meant no taxes. 

This caused large areas of forest to disappear. 

Without trees, the soil eroded quickly. 

Soon, the Holy Land lost most of its plants. 

Only poor crops could grow because the topsoil blew away in the dry winds. 

Eventually, the land became useless, turning into swamps or deserts. 

The situation remained unchanged until God’s people returned.

They started planting trees, and then true to God’s Promise, the land resurrected back to life and became fertile and prosperous again.

This is one history lesson among many why the land of Israel only prospers when God’s Chosen People live there.

Ya feel me?

I am sending a poll to all the Christian denominations on reddit to see what they believe, I will post a video on the results of the poll on my channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SlpDesDlslIcts_EW6L_g

Anyway, the poll is https://forms.gle/nMs3aNgqnEExn1wy6

There is a truth I’ve discovered about how God helps us in times of need.

I could be going through a time of great chaos and uncertainty…

Yet amid the fear and worry, I notice the Lord is faithful and always provides a way of escape.

It could be something small…

For instance, imagine you’re trapped in a burning building…

The flames are getting thicker and the heat is intensifying…

You start to panic for your life…

But then you look over to your left…

And you notice a small window…

You walk closer and discover it’s large enough for you to squeeze through and escape.

I think this is a good example of how God works in our lives.

If you’re feeling confused and depressed about some issue, He’ll send a person your way to communicate a comforting message you need to hear.

If you’re broke with no money to buy food, He’ll direct your attention to that can of beans you stored away in your cupboard a while ago…

And so on.

Why do I bring this up?

Because it reminds me of what happened when Avyatar arrived at David’s fort with the devastating news that Achimelech and all the priests at Nob had been slaughtered.

At that moment, David knew his lies and deception had caused this tragedy.

He openly confessed this and promised to care for Avyatar, the only surviving priest.

But not only that…

And this is the important detail that connects to what I’ve been saying about how God provides what we need in tough times.

Although it’s not mentioned in this chapter (it’s mentioned in the next chapter), Avyatar managed to bring along the priest’s ritual vest with him when he escaped.

Why is this important?

Well, the ritual vest contained the precious Urim and Thummim.

This meant that David now had a way to interpret and discern God’s Will.

This was going to prove invaluable in the days ahead.

And that’s your takeaway.

Despite the chaos and tragedy of the situation…

Through Avyatar, the only priest who survived the massacre at Nob…

God provided a lifeline to David to ensure he would not only survive but thrive in the days ahead.

CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT

“No temptation has overtaken you 
that is not common to man. 
God is faithful, and he will not 
let you be tempted beyond your ability, 
but with the temptation
he will also provide the way
of escape, that you may
be able to endure it.”
-1 Corinthians 10:13

I wish there were a divine intervention. There's so much suffering in the world. Accidents, crimes, viruses, especially rabies.

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(Image from Wikimedia Commons and Micha Perry/IDF Spokesperson Unit)

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The last time we met I talked about how the following prophecy was fulfilled:

 “Therefore Adonai the God of Israel says,
‘I did indeed say that your family
and your father’s family would
walk in my presence forever.’
But now Adonai says, ‘
Forget it! I respect those who respect me,
but those who despise me
will meet with contempt.
The day is coming when I will
break your strength
and the strength of your father’s family
so that no one in your family will live to old age.
At a time when Israel is prospering, 
you will see a rival in my Dwelling;
and never will anyone in your family live to old age.
Still, I won’t cut off every one of your men from my altar;
because that would make your eyes grow dim,
and you would waste away.
Nevertheless, all your descendants will die young.”
-1 Samuel 2:30-33

God is speaking to Eli and letting him know that not one member of his family will live to see old age.

That prophecy was fulfilled when Saul ordered the slaughter of Achimelech and his entire household of priests.

However, there was another major prophecy fulfilled when this event occurred.

It’s contained in verse 32:

“At a time when Israel is prospering, 
you will see a rival in my Dwelling; 
and never will anyone in 
your family live to old age.”

So we’re told Eli’s family had a rival.

Who was this rival?

It was none other than the family of Zadok.

Eli and his offspring were from the line of Ithamar.

Ithamar was one of Aaron’s sons but it was NOT the legitimate High Priestly line.

It was only the descendants of Eleazar who were supposed to be the High Priests.

So which line did Zadok come from?

He came from the legitimate line of Eleazar…

Which means if God was gonna set things straight…

He’d have to dispose of Eli and his family in due time.

Well, we saw that He did just that when Saul ordered the slaughter of the priesthood.

However, recall one member of Eli’s family named Avyatar escaped.

He became the High Priest despite being from the illegitimate line of Ithamar.

So for a while, there were two rival High Priests in existence as follows:

Avyatar from the illegitimate line of Ithamar and…

Zadok from the legitimate line Eleazar.

David allowed these two competing High Priests to serve at the same time…

But when David’s son Solomon assumed the throne, the situation changed.

When Solomon came to power, he booted out Avyatar.

Once that happened, the way things should have been per the Torah were restored.

Now, I dunno about you but my mind is blown away here.

God allowed a terrible massacre to be carried out by a partnership between an Israelite and a gentile that resulted in the elimination of Israel’s priesthood.

This was a terrible evil that Saul committed using his gentile dog the Edomite Do’eg (pun intended).

But here’s the thing.

It was an illegitimate priesthood because it came from the illegitimate line of Ithamar.

Ya feeling me here homies?

There are a couple of amazing takeaways to be extracted from today’s article.

First, there is such a thing as righteous racism.

Bloodlines freakin’ matter man…

Especially when it comes to the Levites and God’s holy priesthood.

That’s the first takeaway.

The second takeaway…

Well heck, in terms of the second takeaway, I can do no better than to quote the Messiah Himself…

“Don’t think that I have come
to abolish the Torah or the Prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to complete. Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven
and earth pass away, not so much as a 
yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah 
— not until everything that must 
happen has happened*.”*

See, here’s the thing…

Just because God allows some religious institutions that claim to be doing His Will to exist does NOT mean they’re legit or will stand forever.

If they’re not in alignment with the Torah, eventually they gotta go.

They could just be a tool in God’s hands to achieve His agenda before He discards it.

I’d say the gentile Christian church fits this description to a tee.

Come to think of it, ain’t that exactly what the Apostle Paul said in Romans Chapter 11?

Didn’t he say he’s using the gentile church to provoke Israel to jealousy?

And then after the full amount of Gentiles has entered in, it’s goodbye to the gentile church, and time for all Israel to be saved.

Honestly, I can’t see how God is going to allow a lawless institution like the gentile church to stand forever.

Think about it.

He allowed the very priesthood of Israel to represent Him for a time but then He eliminated it.

Do you think God is going to allow an institution that has a history of anti-Semitism and preaches that God’s Holy Torah has been done away with to stand forever?

OH HELL NO!

CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT

“For, brothers, I want you to
understand this truth which
God formerly concealed
but has now revealed,
so that you won’t imagine you
know more than you actually do.
It is that stoniness, to a degree, 
has come upon Isra’el, 
until the Gentile world 
enters in its fullness; and that it is in this way 
that all Israel will be saved.
As the Tanakh says,
Out of Tziyon will come 
the Redeemer; he will turn away 
ungodliness from Ya‘akov
and this will be my covenant 
with them, . . .
when I take away their sins.”
-Romans 11:25-27

P.S. If you wanna check out another scorching post on this topic, click HERE to read an article titled “Three Reasons Why The God Of Israel May End Christianity”.

Saying ישוע instead of the anglicised Jesus in an English conversation is not going to turn Jews to Jesus or make the belief in Jesus more palatable because you used his name in Hebrew. Neither is calling the NT(ברית החדשה ) going to make the NT suddenly authoritative for Jews. As that is what all Israeli Jews call it in Hebrew.

So, why do Messianics flood these terms in English conversations with Jews?

Surely you have to do some sort of mental gymnastics. As you are accepting texts which state the opposite or reject your stance?

The reality is there is no Hebraic context that mainstream Christians cannot see, it’s clear in the text that Paul believes that the Torah is annulled.

After successful marches at Columbia University (4500+) last week and at USC (1000+) last night, The Pursuit NW, Oregon for Israel and StandWithUs return to Seattle to march at the University of Washington - starting in Red Square. We need your voice!!! The silent majority needs to speak louder and prevent the vocal minority from hijacking Israel’s right to defend herself 🇮🇱❤️🇮🇱❤️🇮🇱❤️

1. There is a lot of severe weather (severe thunderstorms, flash flooding, tornadoes) in my area these past few days, please pray for the safety of everyone who'd be affected

2. My friend's daughter is very sick with pneumonia, please pray for her healing and that she may be able to get effective treatment

Edit: Make that 3 prayer requests: My friend is also suffering from severe pain from her chronic heavy metal toxicity. Please pray for her relief, that she'd be able to get good rest and good sleep, and have comfort

Thank you so much friends! May Yah bless you in Yeshua's Name. Let me know any way you'd want me to pray for you as well!

I'm a 20-year-old nondonimational Christian, and I'm very fascinated with Messianic Judaism because I believe that Jesus and his apostles were Messianic Jews. Many claim that Eastern Orthodox Christianity is the oldest teaching of Jesus and his Apostles since it originated in the Middle East.

I have been working a blog but it's not gaining any views or comments.I have put in good content and solid research and research sources when possible.Wordpress sucks and I am not computer savy and have tried hard but I can't figure out how to make a better layout.

The layout and accessibility is awful in the blog layout and I just can't fix it.The second problem is I am not a good communicator and my writting is terse ,ubrupt and awkward.

I'm looking for someone who would want to takeover and I am not trying to sell anything,I don't wannt money,I just want the Biblical message to get out.Although my research is good but my communication and computer skills are failing me.I don't the money to hire a professional to spice it up and improve the layout and communication.

I want to surrender it free of charge to someone who wants to write Biblical articles and has the communication skills and computer skills but maybe lacks the free time to do the research to do serious blogging.

She is going through serious injustice, both through judges in court hearings in regards to her ex husband, and her ex husband himself. She really needs healing and strength emotionally, and physically. After countless hearings, she has another court date. Please pray that the facade of her husband would be seen through, and that he would have to pay the funds that he's owed to her and refused to pay leaving her with no income while she's chronically ill. That the court would grant just judgement. Please also pray for her safety through this time, that her ex husband would not harm her. That Yah may come against any ploy to keep her down and that no weapon formed against her would prosper in Yeshua's Name. Thank you so much!!

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Lv16%3A01-18%3A30%3BEz22%3A1-19%3BRo3%3A19-28%3B9%3A30-10%3A13%3B13%3A8-10%3B1Co5%3A1-13%3B6%3A9-20%3B2Co2%3A1-11%3BGa3%3A10-14%3B5%3A13-26%3BHe7%3A23-10%3A25%3B&version=CJB

Romans 14:23

23 "But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin."

My life has been spiraling more and more into an OCD nightmare, because I keep thinking about this verse. At first I started avoiding meat because of blood splotches and slaughter methods that are not biblical. Then I was unsure if I can still take synthetic vitamins and medicines, since it could be "pharmakeia" (The actual greek term that we translate as scorcery, but it actually means poison, medication, potion etc.)

And lately I came across verses in which God talks about fat from certain animals being prohibited to eat. (Leviticus 3:17, Leviticus 7:22-27) I used to eat a lot of whipping cream lately which is basically pure fat. I also started doubting drinking milk because maybe they did not skim the fat or whatever. I know that the verse is talking about other kinds of fat on the animal probably, but I can't shake the feeling. On top of that I have a chronic Illness that limits what I can eat due to reactions. So I basically went from eating meat and dairy to soon-to-be-malnourished vegan, just to avoid doing things out of doubt that would condemn me.

I ditched the synthetic supplements I was taking and bought an expensive magnesium mineral water. Turns out they advertise it with a mythological background story of Apollo (An Idol), that is connected with the well. They also put his image on some of their bottles. The ones I bought do not have that image but now I am once again in a state of doubt and can not drink it with a clear conscience.

So now I see three choices:

• I take the supplements and sin because I'm doubting
• I drink the water and sin because I'm doubting
• I try to get magnesium from food and probably get sicker because it is very likely that I wont tolerate it (I have MCAS)

I need some ideas how to get out of this because it is just horrible to be in a constant state of doubt and fear of sinning. How do I shake off this feeling? I need to get the nutrients in, but at this point that seems to be so hard without violating my conscience.

The verse says what it says, and everytime I try to do something of the things I mentioned, I get this intense feeling that tells me not to do it, because I feel doubt.

Where do I go to meet young messianic Jews? The two Messianic churches I've been to don't have many singles of dating age (21-30).

I'm undergoing severe spiritual affliction, prayers would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you so much, may you be blessed in Yeshua's Name

I am a Christian who has a great love for the Jewish people, and especially for the remnant of Messianic Jews that have accepted Yeshua as Lord and Savior. There are a number of synagogues in my area and I want to support the Jews, but I feel weird walking in and asking how. I want to build relationships to open up avenues to share the gospel in a caring and organic way. Any advice appreciated!

So I posted both in r/jewish and r/judaism about how I would raise my kids as a Christian with a man who’s Messianic/ Nazarene Jew. He’s very relaxed, doesn’t keep kosher atm, and I have expressed to him that when we have kids, I would like to raise them Jewish. Problem is, I come from a Christian background and I am really trying to understand why. I’m trying to understand how this works because on one hand, the Jewish community as a whole doesn’t want to accept them, and then Christians will but have tons of questions. I’m of the understanding that because I’m not Jewish, my children won’t be recognized as Jewish, and some even say that my partner isn’t Jewish at all, despite being raised in Judaism and having a barmitzvah, celebrating holidays with family, and everything.

I don’t want to make my partner feel like they’re interrogated by me because this is all future speculation, but still, this is something I’ve felt led to consider about the future. I’m still trying o learn about practices and holidays, and I am also aware that Jews for Jesus is antisemitic in nature, and he has told me that he doesn’t want to claim being Messianic, but rather Nazarene, and it’s lowkey confusing for me. Could someone help me out?

Hi I’m a bit confused of your main beliefs , could you please let me know . And are you considered Christian or Jewish (as in following Judaism)

Thanks 😊

Looking for one with English and Hebrew, including Shabbat blessing, shacharit, mincha mariv, and just general blessings.

Hello, I am a teenager recently introduced into this religion a few months ago and I have a question concerning friendships. Recently my parents have asked me to not be friends with anyone I met online or in person, I am confused by this because up until a last Saturday I have been able to keep my friends in my life. I believe the reason they have asked me this is because something my online pastor has told us. Last Saturday during Shabbat my pastor who is on Youtube said something about keeping people in our lives who do not follow Yahshua or the Torah are a bad influence. He said: "If you let your children live, play, have contact with idolatrous people, with people who follow the enemy, you are offering them to idols. I knew a long time ago of people who were keeping Torah but at the same time they let their children have contact with their uncles with their cousins ​​with their relatives who did not keep Torah. What happened was that they quickly became contaminated and then the boys or children began having strange ideas or began to play strange things. It made their children want to do mundane things. What happened to that child was that the young man was exposed to Moloch's fire and did not have to go before an idol."

I was not sure at the time if this applied to my online friends since we primarily played games together and just hung out together. They are not bad people, they did not influence me to do anything sinful. Most of them are Christians and from what I can tell as of now, they did not practice voluntary sin. I have 0 in person friends because I moved into a new neighborhood, however, I was planning to make a few friends in the new school I am attending but now I can't. If any of you people could give me advice or fill me in on any information I may be missing out on in this topic it would be greatly appreciated.

If I cannot be friends anymore with the people I had befriended I am willing to accept that fact but I just want to make sure because I am afraid I may be leaving them when I don't have to. If you would also like any more information I am more than willing to give it to you so long as it isn't too personal. Thank you.

https://youtu.be/1HJQiFqf8Uo?si=avt1_fnbVAKWapCA

Pesach song written about 1500 years ago by Galilean poet Yanay