On June 10, 2023

NOTES ON THE DAY WHEN ISRAEL’S GLORY SHALL WANE: ANTICHRIST’S ABOMINATION AND FLIGHT OF THE JEWISH REMNANT TO PETRA

SCRIPTURE. “And in that day the former glory of Jacob [Israel—his might, his population, his prosperity] shall be enfeebled, and the fat of his flesh shall become lean.” – ISAIAH 17:4, AMPC

QUOTATIONS

SOLZHENITSYN. “You only have power over people as long as you don’t take everything away from them. But when you’ve robbed a man of everything, he’s no longer in your power—‘He’s free again!’” ― Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Двести лет вместе [Two Hundred Years Together], 2001-2002; edited

WIESEL. “‘We must take sides.’ Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.‘Sometimes we must interfere.’ When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.” ― Elie Wiesel, The Night Trilogy: Night, Dawn, The Accident, 2004; edited

BONHOEFFER. “Bonhoeffer believed it was the role of the Church to speak for those who could not speak. To fight unjust practices in the Church was right, but to allow them to exist outside the Church would be evil. So it was with the persecution of Jews by the Nazi state. Bonhoeffer preached a fierce public opposition to the policies of the Nazis. ‘Only he who cries out for the Jews may sing Gregorian chants,’ he said.” ― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 1938; quoted in Matthew Gindin, “The German Pastor Who Died Fighting Nazism with Spiritual Activism,” The Wisdom Daily, Mar. 22, 2017; edited

I. FIRST THOUGHTS

FAMILY LEGENDS. For many years there was discussion in my family about our Hispanic heritage being linked to the Jewish Sephardim of eastern Spain, and especially to the little island of Ibiza off the eastern coast of Catalonia. That would explain my nearly lifelong admiration and love for the Jewish people, and Israel more specifically.

Several other things happened with me at Regent University in the 1980s that continued to suggest that I was from Jewish-Hispanic ancestry, and the family discussions and some early research lent me to that conclusion. Right down to coming close to helping craft a faculty exchange program between Regent University and the University of Haifa, the historic home of the Jewish Tribe of Asher, from which I began to surmise I may have descended.

My family legends were put to the test when I recently submitted my DNA to formal analysis and found out the following. My Hispanic (Rodriquez) heritage was indeed linked to much of Spain, with a significant geographic indication of ‘Ibiza.’ This along with the identification of Mexico’s regions of Durango and Michoacán de Ocampo).

My father’s ancestry (Anderson, Kelly is an adoptive name) traces to Northern Britain, brushing up against southern Scotland. So basically, I am a combination of Anglo-Hispanic European, with strong intimations of Jewish ancestry from the eastern provinces of Spain. Or at least so I had thought for a very long time.

However, turns out that I don’t have even a drop of Jewish blood. So much for family legends! When with a downcast and somewhat confused heart I inquired of the Lord about all this, I shall never forget what I ‘heard’ in reply. Went like this (if indeed it was His Voice and not my own):

“I didn’t give you Jewish ancestry son, but I did give you a Jewish heart.”

Which prompted another explanation for my deep structure love for and commitment to the defense of Jewish Israel. It started when my son presented me with a copy of a book entitled, ‘The Lost Jews of Ibiza.’ I have since lost that book but came across what follows in a fascinating excursion into a dark period of Spanish-Catholic history, laced with some extraordinary shafts of light – from the Island of Ibiza.

ISLAND OF THE LOST JEWS. My family history does in fact trace to Ibiza, and the more I study, I think I realize how that has figured prominently in my overall outlook both to my Spanish-Mexican heritage and to the Jewish presence in Spain, and most especially on that small Spanish island.

Here are some excerpts from an excellent short history that gets us to the heart of what I am trying to say. It is by the late GLORIA MOUND, a Jewish emigrant to Israel from Great Britain who spent her entire life researching and reporting on the history, dispersion, and fate of the Jews exiled from Spain in the Spanish Inquisition of 1492. – “Survivors of the Spanish Exile: The Underground Jews of Ibiza,” Jerusalem Letter 99, 22 Shevat 5748 / Feb. 10, 1988; edited

“After the establishment of the Inquisition in 1410, the Vicars General of the Inquisition who came to the [Balearic] Islands on inspection tours were given comfortable country homes and all who came left highly satisfied that within the islands until the final suppression of the dreaded Inquisition on July 15, 1834, ‘No one practiced the Laws of Moses or Mohomet.’ Yet searching in the archives of Ibiza, I found a number of transfers of Jewish properties to other Jews of the community during the years 1394-1423, and again in 1577 and 1685. All the sites were located along the ‘Street of the Jews’ and the documents clearly state that the obligatory religious oath was a Jewish Oath …

In another report a Mr. Hausmann, a Jew from Barcelona, told of visiting

the Island of Ivica, the smallest of the Balearic Islands, where he came into contact with the ‘Chuetas’ (literally, pork-eaters), as the local descendants of ‘Marranos’ [forced Jewish converts who secretly practiced Judaism] are called. He was at a pension together with another Jew, and they washed their hands and said grace afterwards. A couple of days later a fellow-guest who had watched them approached Mr. Hausmann and asked him if he was a Jew. Upon being told that he was, the stranger embraced him and said, in a state of deep emotion; ‘You are my brother!’… He told him that there were quite of number of Chuetas on the island, and that a local Catholic priest acted secretly also as a rabbi. They performed the rite of circumcision in the privacy of a cellar. They observed the Sabbath by lighting a couple of candles, which they immediately threw into the fire, thus following the custom of their Marrano ancestors, who used to throw the candles into the fire for fear of being discovered by an informer. On Sabbath afternoon, several leading personalities, including the priest, the Chief of Police, lawyers, doctors, pharmacists, and other professional people and intellectuals usually met for an hour to discuss Jewish matters and then dispersed.”

DK. All of this to propose to you TWO THINGS: One, that the Ibicencos typically hid the Jews from the brutality of the Spanish Inquisitors for centuries, long after the Pogrom ended though anti-Semitism lingered. Two, I now wonder out loud if my Christian-Catholic ancestors were among those who gave shelter to the Jewish exiles.

If so, therefore, it just may be that God created me to be a supporter of the Jewish people and Israel, persuading me that I am what the Jews might call, a ‘Ger Toshav,’ or “Righteous Gentile.” These were non-Jews who wished to honor the Jewish people without converting, but lived by the Noahic Covenant’s Seven Laws:

Do not worship idols.
Do not curse God.
Do not murder.
Do not commit adultery.
Do not steal.
Do not eat flesh torn from a living animal.
Establish courts [or occasions] of justice.

To be clear: I live and shall be judged by the Christian Canon but embed these Royal Rules inside my commitment to Christian Grace, as those incentives are already in my heart and I daresay, have always been there. It just may be that all this suggests, at least, that I could be descended from ‘the Ger Toshov of Ibiza.’

II. THREE JEWISH REMNANTS

We begin here by pointing out that there are more than one Jewish Remnant historically. I shall briefly review each one to get us to our next important point.

THE OLD TESTAMENT REMNANT. “In [Romans 11:1-10], Paul is asking what happens to the Jewish people who have rejected Jesus Christ as God and Messiah, and whether there’s any hope for them. Paul’s answer is yes and no. He uses the idea of a [Jewish] ‘Remnant’ to describe the difference. Yes, God has a plan for ‘some’ of Israel (Romans 11:1-6). No, God will not save all of Israel (Romans 11:7-10). To make this point, he uses the story of Elijah where God had a Remnant of 7,000 faithful believers in the godless days of King Ahab (1 Kings 19:9-18), among other sections of the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 29:4; Psalm 69:22; Isaiah 29:10). Throughout history, it has always been the case that not every biological descendant of Abraham would share his faith in Jesus Christ. Instead, there has always been a ‘Remnant’ of people who did. Examples would include Noah and hisfamily in the days of the Flood (Genesis 6:5-7:23), Joseph and his family (Genesis 45:7), and a group of faithful believers in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah (Ezra 9:6-15; Nehemiah 1:2-3).” – MARK DRISCOLL, “Old Testament Remnants,” Real Faith, ret. June 2, 2023; edited

THE TRANSITIONAL REMNANT. “The 144,000 [Jews] are first mentioned in Revelation 7:4, ‘Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.’ This passage comes in AN INTERLUDE between the Judgment of the Sixth Seal of the Tribulation (Revelation 6:12–17) and the opening of the Seventh Seal (Revelation 8:1) … These 144,000 Jews are ‘sealed,’ which means they have the special protection of God. They are kept safe from the Divine Judgments and from the wrath of the Antichrist. They can freely perform their mission during the Tribulation. It had been previously prophesied that Israel would repent and turn back to God (Zechariah 12:10; Romans 11:25–27), and the 144,000 Jews seem to be a sort of ‘First Fruits’ (Revelation 14:4) of that Redeemed Israel. Their Mission seems to be to evangelize the Post-Rapture world and proclaim the Gospel during the Tribulation Period. As a result of their ministry, millions — ‘a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language’ (Revelation 7:9)—will come to faith in Christ.” – EDITORS, “Who Are the 144,000?” Got Questions, ret. June 1, 2023; edited

THE NEW TESTAMENT REMNANT. “That there will be a Jewish Remnant at the close, delivered and blessed by the Lord at His Coming, blessed on earth, is, beyond all controversy, the Doctrine of Scripture. This Remnant has neither the Church’s heavenly blessings nor the Church’s hope. For those who have inquired into these subjects, it ought not to be necessary to quote passages of Scripture to prove this. Still, as it is in its consequences a very important point, I will reproduce here some of the principal passages which prove the fact that there is ‘a Remnant’ and show the state in which that Remnant is. First, as regards the Jews, Zech. 13:8, 9: ‘And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God’ … As regards Judah, Daniel tells us (12), ‘And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: ‘And there shall be a time of trouble,’ such as never was since there was a nation, even to that same time: And at that time Thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the Book.’” – EDITORS, “The Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant,” Bible Truth, ret. June 1, 2023; edited

DK. The very powerful, inescapable and Canonical point here is summed up in the phrase we have all heard but perhaps few of us fully appreciate: “God is by no means done with Israel!” To the absolute destruction of the spurious invention of “Replacement Theology,” conjured by largely anti-Semitic theologians who knew not Joseph.

The Jewish APOSTLE PAUL speaks to this Truth in such clarity that I am amazed at the confusion that still proliferates the American Church.

“‘I say then, has God rejected and disowned His people? Certainly not!’ For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected His [chosen] people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? ‘Lord, they have killed Your prophets, they have torn down Your altars, and I alone am left [of the prophets], and they are seeking my life.’ But what is God’s response to him? “I have kept for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.’” – ROMANS 11:1-4, AMP

COMMENTARY: 11:1-10. “Meanwhile the rejection of Israel never was, nor is, total: a Remnant believes, and so abides in Covenant … The whole Olive Tree—its root, branches, and all—is the Church Universal, in which there is ‘neither Greek nor Jew;’ i.e., in which every real part of the organism, every true believer, shares the sap and life of grace in equal reality. But the special imagery is framed to emphasize not this truth, but another truth in harmony with it; viz. that ‘salvation is of the Jews!’—That with the Hebrew Patriarch began—after a distinct break of continuity—the more definite life and history of the Church; that for ages the saints were all (practically) found among his sons; and that ‘the Universal Saviour was of the seed of David.’” – MATTHEW HENRY, Exposition of the Old and New Testaments, 6 vols., 1708-1710; edited

IN SUM. God has not, nor shall He ever break Covenant with His chosen people, though He chastise them much before their Final Rescue. Indeed, by the Law and by the Prophets, by the Apostles and by the Messiah Himself, do we deal still another mortal blow to the spurious lies of Replacement Theology!

III. THE TEACHING

KEY TERMS. ‘Glory; Enfeebled; Fat; Lean’

GLORY. ‘Kabowd’ [כָּבוֹד]: “Splendor or copiousness; abundance or riches; honour, majesty or wealth, weight (of one’s external condition or circumstances); dignity of position; reputation of character; reverence ascribed to such a one; brightness or great luster; praise; fame; renown; celebrity.”

ENFEEBLED. ‘Dalal’ [דָּלַל]: “To hang, be [brought] low, to languish; to slacken or wane; be oppressed; to dry up, become emptied; not equal, failed; to be impoverished, made thin; be diminished; to decrease; to decline or sink (down low); to decrease in strength, intensity, wealth or power; to become less brilliant.”

FAT[NESS]. ‘Mashman’ [מַשְׁמָן]: “Figuratively, a rich dish, fertile field or robust man; the state or quality of having a large amount of excess; the quality of being substantial, especially financially; ‘Fatness’ is used figuratively also for the richness of God’s goodness; ‘becoming sleek.’”

LEAN. ‘Razah’ [רָזָה]: “To emaciate, wax thin; to famish or starve; meager; not rich; destitute of good qualities; barren of thought or means; poor, low; hard, tough, bare; containing little or no fat; lacking in richness, fullness or quantity; scant, inadequate, paltry, limited, spare; deficient, beggarly; pitiful, puny, miserable.”

COMMENTARY: VV. 4-11. “A DENUNCIATION OF WOE ON ISRAEL, COMBINED WITH THE PROMISE OF A REMNANT … Her glory will decay, her population dwindle and almost disappear. ‘Still there will be a few left,’ who, under the circumstances, will turn to God (v. 7). But it will be too late for anything like a National Recovery; the land will remain ‘a desolation’ on account of the past sins of its inhabitants (vv. 9-11). Verse 4. – ‘The glory of Jacob shall be made thin.’ There is reason to believe that the deportation of the Israelites was [and yet shall be again in the Last Days] gradual … Depopulation is primarily intended; but there is, perhaps, also a more general reference to depression, wasting, and misery.” – EXELL & SPENCE-JONES, The Pulpit Commentary, 1909-1919; edited

DK. My contemporary update regarding this as a Prophecy of future fulfillment or repetition is that there will come a Day soon now when Israel shall give herself over to the Antichrist for 3 1/2 years, believing him to be the promised Messiah. Halfway into the seven-year ‘Time of Jacob’s Troubles,’ he will violate the Covenant, Abominate the ‘Tribulation Remnant Jews’ who, having been awakened by that Great Desecration, would no longer bow to Antichrist.

Thereby were they ‘forced to take flight to relatively safety’ – the subject of this next crucial section.

IV. THE FLIGHT TO PETRA

Here again I defer to one vastly more informed than I about this Grandest of Stories. He is PROF. JOHAN MALAN of the University of the North in South Africa. This piece is entitled, “Israel’s Escape to Petra: The Mountain Stronghold,” Bible Guidance, ret. June 1, 2023; edited

“Petra, meaning ‘Rock’ in Greek, is a deserted city south of the Dead Sea in Jordan. In antiquity it was known as Seir, metropolis of the Edomites. In later times, the Nabateans settled in the mountain stronghold of the dislodged Edomites and called their capital Petra. The city is situated in a rift valley which extends from the Kidron Valley in Jerusalem through the Dead Sea and further south. Indications are that an earthquake and volcanic activity occurred here, forming a big canyon with rocky ravines and steep cliffs. The remains of the spectacular city consist of temples, tombs and dwellings carved out of the sandstone cliffs. The only entrance to the city is through a narrow gorge almost two kilometres in length, which can easily be guarded and even blocked if necessary, ‘thus rendering Petra a very safe refuge]’…

At the start of the 70^th Year-Week of Seven Years, Israel will enter into a Covenant with the False Messiah (Antichrist). Daniel 9:27 reads: ‘Then he shall confirm the Covenant with many for one week.’ The False Messiah will be endowed with all of Satan’s powers of deception (Rev. 12:9; 13:2) and will use these powers to perform astounding ‘signs and lying wonders’ (2 Thess. 2:9) to deceive Israel and the nations into concluding a Covenant with him.

Halfway through the seven year period, Israel and the whole world will be shocked out of the false sense of peace that they have enjoyed for three and a half years: ‘And in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and offering to cease; and upon the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate; until the full determined end is poured out on the Desolator’ (Dan. 9:27; Amplified Bible). ‘And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the Abomination of Desolation’ [an unclean, Pagan ritual; Dan. 11:31].

The true Messiah described this Time of Terror in His Prophetic Discourse:

‘When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoever readeth, let him understand): then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains: let him who is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house: neither let him who is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe to those who are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day: for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved’ (MATTHEW 24:15-22; KJV) …

The command to the inhabitants of Jerusalem (the core of the Jewish nation) is clear: ‘Flee to the mountains!’ (Mt. 24:16). The mountains in Israel are not very high, the highest ones being about 1200 metres. Also, they do not offer safe refuge to a large group of people. ‘At Petra,’ however, the mountains are about 1500 metres high, being the highest in Jordan. They are of the most rugged and inaccessible mountain ranges in the world. It will be very difficult for the enemy forces to reach the Jewish exiles here. In terms of the following prophecy in Daniel 11:41 the Jews will certainly know that Jordan will be a relatively safe refuge as this country will not be directly controlled by the Antichrist: ‘He shall also enter the Glorious Land [Israel], and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon.’ The territories of these three ancient peoples coincide with the present Jordan. In the light of Biblical Prophecy it would, therefore, be very wise to flee to the deserted mountain fortress of the Edomites in Jordan. It is also significant that Petra has been declared a world heritage site that may not be attacked, bombarded or in any way damaged during times of war. This is another factor which renders Petra a safe place of refuge during future wars in the Middle East.”

DK. There is so vastly more to this Mega-Story, but suffice for now that the following Truths are well established for our further understanding and preparation for the Days Ahead.

ONE: Jesus Christ has not abandoned His Covenant with Israel (as contrasted with Antichrist’s False Covenant; do keep a close eye here on The Abraham Accords crafted by Donald Trump and Jared Kushner).

TWO: The entire Believing Remnant of Israel who will finally reject Antichrist and re-embraced the true God of Israel, shall all be saved. Scholars still debate whether this Jewish Remnant has confessed The Christ at this point, or by God’s Foreknowledge are preserved when they do so later.

THREE: Let no Gentile Christian boast on his superiority to the “Trunk of the Tree” that supports the branches, ever! (Romans 11:18). This to allay against even the hint of anti-Semitism for any reason. God’s First Born were and ever shall be The Jew. It was no accident of Providence that the Son of Yahweh is a Jew named Yeshua ben David. Selah.

So it is that Almighty God has always, always preserved a Holy Remnant. And contrary to a teaching I just heard from a nationally acclaimed Bible teacher, it is not “huge.” I presume to assure his OSAS American family of God, all of those in Church are saved – no matter what! I mean, the very word, “Remnant” is defined as “a surviving trace.” Oy gevalt!

But which neatly brings me to my closing thought – and it’s a big one.

V. LAST THOUGHTS

I am asked from time to time, “Dr. Kelly, just what does it take to be a bona fide member of God’s Remnant?” Great question, and I have addressed it before. But in this very brief Conclusion section, let me turn to an astounding quotation from C.S. LEWIS’ classic, Mere Christianity (1952), a book that dramatically transformed my faith in my early years of following Yeshua.

Think of this as our Lord speaking directly to us as we pose that question, and it will make more sense. Here is how He answers.

“GIVE ME ALL OF YOU!!! I don’t want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work. I want YOU!!! ALL OF YOU!! I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man or woman, but to KILL IT! No half measures will do. I don’t want to only prune a branch here and a branch there; rather I want the whole tree out! Hand it over to Me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them ALL over to Me, give yourself to Me and I will make of you ‘a new self’—in My image. Give Me yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will shall become your will. My heart shall become your heart.”

This is unabridged, bold and straight up affirmation of DIETRICH BONHOEFFER’S famous, razor-sharp Summary of the entire Gospel to a simple Declaration: “When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die” (Nachfolge: The Cost of Discipleship, 1937).

Beloved, I have no more “last thoughts!” If the likes of Lewis and Bonhoeffer and the Words of the Messiah Himself cannot persuade you of the very real ‘Cost of Discipleship,’ then I have surely failed. So I leave it right there, all on the Field of Battle, as it were.

Come die with me, therefore, and live a life so full of rich purpose and joy, along with sorrow, that I could not possibly describe it to you.

Ever your servant, DK

YOUTUBE VIDEO (OLD): https://youtu.be/QkSZkv34RZI