May 9, 2029

Most of you probably don’t remember a television show that ran from 1968-70, entitled “Land of the Giants.” I barely do though it was one of my earliest childhood memories, yet today I find myself wondering if the producers of the show borrowed their title for it from Deuteronomy 3:13, which specifically refers to a “land of the giants.” Secular historians widely maintain that no race of giants existed in antiquity, yet the Bible uses several unquestionably ethnic terms to describe them, including the Rephaim, Anakim, Emim and Zamzummim (Deut. 2:11, 20).

Almost 75% of the eighteen occurrences of the English word giant or giants found in the New King James Version come directly from the Hebrew word for Rephaim, early inhabitants of Canaan (cf. Gen. 15:20). Numbers 13:33 even states by way of commentary that “the descendants of Anak came from the giants.” That races of giants once existed in antiquity is also reinforced by passages like Deut. 3:11 and Josh. 12:4; 13:12, which refer to a “remnant of the giants.” Most ancient cultures also describe men of great size and strength that have since disappeared from history.

In the Bible the ten faithless Israelite spies who scouted the Promised Land called the Anakim who lived there “men of great stature” (Num. 13:32) and “a people great and tall” (Deut. 9:2) though many today assert that these statements are merely the emotional reaction of intimated men. Some furthermore insist that the occasional biblical reference to giant-sized men can surely mean only that from time to time men do sometimes grow to an unusual height as did Robert Wadlow who measured 8 ft. 11 in. shortly before his death in 1940, but biblical references to a “land of giants” and descriptive statements by Moses and Joshua that identify several ethnic groups of giants would surely suggest otherwise.

-Daniel McCabe

Trivia

Many different languages are spoken in Jerusalem, including Arabic, Armenian, Greek and Hebrew. The following four words are sometimes used to say “hello” in one of the four aforementioned languages, but which one is Arabic?

History: Jerusalem Day

It can be a pretty intense day! But let’s start at the beginning! When Britain pulled out of what was known as Mandatory Palestine in 1948, a war broke out between Jewish and Arab forces that resulted among other things in the division of Jerusalem into two parts: East Jerusalem controlled by the Arabs and the western section of Jerusalem controlled by the Jews. This standoff would last for nineteen years until the State of Israel launched a preemptive strike against the surrounding Arab nations who threatened military action against Israel. On June 7, 1967, the third day of a six-day conflict, Israeli paratroopers entered the Old City of Jerusalem from the east through Lion’s Gate, defeated the scattered Jordanian forces that held it, and took full control of the city and its holy sites, including the Temple Mount and the Western Wall, until that time known as the Wailing Wall.

That day, 28 Iyar on the Hebrew calendar, has been celebrated annually by Israelis as both a national and a religious holiday. Called Jerusalem Day, this year’s celebration of the reunification of Jerusalem ironically falls on May 15, my blue-eyed sister’s birthday and the 78th anniversary of Israel’s first full day of independence as a state.

As you can imagine Jerusalem Day celebrations are generally not celebrated by the city’s Arab population who mark it conversely as the beginning of Israel’s occupation of East Jerusalem. Even so, the Jews celebrate the day with political speeches, a youth parade, music, dancing and prayer at the Western Wall, though not all participate, for some religious Jews do not recognize the secular government of Israel while some Israeli politicians have even tried to abolish the day, questioning what they describe as its aggressive nationalism, provocation and exclusion.

-Daniel McCabe

Christology—the Death, Burial and Ascension of Jesus, part 6

These events are simple matters of history as the Bible has revealed them to us. The death of Jesus was, of course, prophesied in the Old Testament (Isaiah 53:8; Daniel 9:26; Zechariah 13:7) as well as by Jesus Himself (Matthew 20:18; John 12:23-24). His death, of course, was undeserved. He didn’t do anything wrong, and although undeserved, Jesus’ death was voluntary. He laid down His own life. He willingly went along with God’s plan to be that sacrifice. He was then buried in a new tomb, but He did not remain in the grave as we know because He was resurrected. Is there a greater aspect of anything than the resurrection of Jesus Christ?

We know that if Jesus was not raised from the dead, then we are to be pitied above all people. His resurrection too was prophesied in the Old Testament (Psalm 16:10; Isaiah 26:19) as well as by Christ Himself. Jesus was raised by the power of God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. All three members or subsistencies of the Trinity were involved just as they were all involved in the creation and in our salvation. They were all involved in Jesus’ resurrection, yet for me to say the word “they” sounds weird because there is one God. We use the word “they” because there are three persons of the Godhead, which transcends our comprehension, but agrees with Scripture. God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit were all involved in Jesus’ resurrection, which secured justification for the believer. This is clear from Romans 4:25 (it was necessary for the fulfillment of Scripture) and from Luke 24:45-47 (it was necessary for the forgiveness of sins). Jesus later ascended into heaven and is currently in heaven with the Father—simple matters of history that we know and love and need for our own salvation.

-Adam Keim

History and Geography—Amos of Tekoa

“The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake” (Amos 1:1).

The village of Tekoa, hometown to Amos the prophet, was established in the days of Rehoboam (2 Chronicles 11:6). It is nestled in the Judean hills, about 8.5 miles south of Jerusalem.

Tekoa has been a small town for all of its history and is a quiet residential area today. Amos famously said, “I was no prophet, nor a prophet’s son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs” (Amos 7:14). His shepherd life would have been very similar to those of the shepherds who heard the announcement of the messiah’s birth (Luke 2:8-21), especially since Bethlehem is only a few miles away.

Amos is its most famous resident, but do you remember another biblical person from there? Joab brought a wise woman from Tekoa to go before David and convince him (by some tricky means) to bring Absalom back from exile after Absalom killed his brother Amnon (2 Samuel 14).

Letters from a leader of the Bar Kokhba revolt were found in a valley nearby the town. The Bar Kokhba revolt was fought from AD 132-136; also known as the Third Jewish-Roman War, it was the third and last of three major rebellions against the Roman Empire by the Jews.

Tekoa is one of those places that tourists seldom visit and most people have never heard of. But if you ever find yourself there, survey the landscape and take in the view that Amos beheld every day. To the east you can look out over the Dead Sea and see the country of Jordan. As visitors to Israel know, places are a lot closer together than what we often assume when reading the Bible.

-Adam Keim

Answer to the Trivia

C. Marhaba