Vazquez Counseling

Friends, it is vitally important that we all know what the LORD says about His chosen people, Israel. You have to ask yourself, why is there so much hatred of the Jewish people in the world? The reality is that this irrational hatred of Israel has existed ever since the Twelve Patriarchs formed the great Nation of Israel and were driven from Egypt during the Exodus. Reading the Scriptures, it is clear that the Jewish people were hated because they were God’s people. There is another reason the Jews are so despised to this day. Our LORD promised Israel that the Blessed Messiah, our LORD Jesus Christ, the Savior of the World, would come through them. If Jesus is hated, wouldn’t it make sense that the people through whom God chose to bring Him forth would be hated as well? It is no coincidence that Jews and Christians are reviled in our culture. Muslims say that they will come first to kill those who worship on Saturday (the Jews), and then they will come to kill those who worship on Sunday (Christians). We are both in their crosshairs, and they do not hide their hatred of us at all.

So, what does the Holy Bible say about all of this? In Zechariah 12, our LORD reveals what will happen regarding Israel in the Last Days.

Zechariah 12 reads as follows:

“The burden of the word of the LORD against Israel. Thus says the LORD, who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him: ‘Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. In that day,’ says the LORD, ‘I will strike every horse with confusion, and its rider with madness; I will open My eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the LORD of hosts, their God.’ In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem.

The LORD will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall not become greater than that of Judah. In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; the one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the Angel of the LORD before them. It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. And the land shall mourn, every family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of Shimei by itself, and their wives by themselves; all the families that remain, every family by itself, and their wives by themselves.” (New King James Version)

This passage holds several key prophecies that we should all take note of, especially in light of what is going on in the world right now. Israel was attacked by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023. The atrocities that were committed by Hamas against the Jewish people are almost too difficult to fathom. I’ve seen the images of our Jewish Brothers and Sisters being systematically slaughtered, simply for being Jewish. Then, when Israel defended herself, the Jews became the evildoers in the eyes of the world. Never mind that these Hamas cowards hide behind their own women and children. Somehow, the people of Israel were perceived by many as the aggressors in this war.

Let me ask you, if America was attacked on her own soil, what would be our response? Well, that exact thing happened on September 11, 2001. Muslim terrorists destroyed our World Trade Center and in the process killed over 3000 of our people. We responded by launching the war on terror that killed thousands of them. Ultimately, the terrorists paid a heavy price for attacking us.

The enemy of our souls, who is the one behind any terrorist organization, will never stop attacking us until our LORD locks him up for eternity, which is coming (read the end of the Book of Revelation for details on this future event). The Scriptures proclaim that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. The enemy can never win, and in fact, our LORD Jesus sealed our victory over the enemy with his Life, Death, and Resurrection over 2000 years ago.

Notice what Zechariah 12 says about the nations turning against Israel. The Word doesn’t say that only a few nations will go against Israel; the Word says ALL nations will turn against Israel. I cannot emphasize that enough. There is a time coming when the entire world will come against Israel. Do you see that starting to happen now? When Israel defended herself against Hamas and Hezbollah, a righteous act, by the way, many nations condemned the Jewish nation for doing this. When we defended ourselves after 9/11, there were nations that believed we were overreacting, or perhaps, unjustifiably bombing countries where our enemies were holed up, but there was not this same level of irrational hatred thrown at us as is being cast at Israel right now. I want to draw your attention to a small detail in the passage above that no one seems to notice, precisely because it’s not there. Zechariah doesn’t tell us why the world turns against Israel. He just tells us that it happens. I submit to you that as the attacks on Israel mount, and they will, and Israel does what it has to do to defend itself, the entire world will turn against her. And that includes the United States. Already, many of our leaders are leading the charge against Israel. We have forgotten that God promises to bless those who bless Israel and curse those who curse Israel.

If the first part of Zechariah 12 is the bad news, then the second part of the chapter is the good news. After the world turns against Israel, our Blessed LORD promises that the people of Israel will turn to their Savior Jesus. Zechariah says they will mourn for Jesus like He is their firstborn, which He really is. What a wonderful promise! After more than 2000 years of unbelief, the Jewish people will come Home. Our LORD will regenerate their hearts, and they will place their faith in the only One Who saves, our Blessed King of kings Jesus. Then, I believe the end of all things will come. Our LORD says in His Word that He is not willing that anyone should perish. If the Jews, who have rejected the Savior of the world for millennia, come to faith in Jesus, who else is left to save? This should give all of us great hope, for it means that the Second Coming of God is very close. I urge you to watch world events very closely and carefully over the course of this year. Things will go from bad to to very bad to much worse. A Great Tribulation is coming. Nation will rise up against nation, but the key factor is when the world completely turns on God’s chosen people, the Nation of Israel. Place your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, and God will rescue you from His wrath that is most certainly coming. Only God can regenerate the hearts of the Jewish people, and He will do the same for you through the effectual work of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Amen.