In 2001, my mother revealed that I was Jewish. My maternal line is Sephardic, tracing back to Spain, with my grandfather a Cohen—a priestly descendant. Family tradition even links us through cousins to Gamliel the Elder, the renowned first-century rabbi. Growing up, I was deeply interested in the wisdom and teachings of Messianic Teachers. My father’s side is Black.

They carry the E-M2 (E1b1a) Y-haplogroup. This lineage is dominant in West and Central Africa. It is also common among African Americans due to historical migrations. This mixed heritage in one family
beautifully illustrates my rabbi, Chaim Richmond’s, teaching.

He has always said: Hashem’s children encompass the whole world. Each nation, each person, is unique with a distinct place in the divine plan. The Jewish people were chosen to accept the Torah. They are also chosen to pass on the Torah to the nations. Yet, every person has their role.

The Torah

I was raised in a Christian context where the “Old Testament” formed the foundation. I sought a deeper understanding of my Jewish roots. Rabbi Chaim Richmond became—and remains—my spiritual compass. The pressures of this world can pull me off course. It holds dominant Christian narratives and often resists unfiltered truth. He gently redirects me to the eternal Torah.

My search led me into the Messianic movement. Teachers from First Fruits of Zion visited our synagogue. I learned from Avi Ben-Mordechai, Holisa Alewine, Joe Good, and Rico Cortes. I studied the teachings of Eddie Chumney, Monte Judah, Bill Cloud, Tony Robinson, Jim Staley, and Michael Rood. FFOZ was also influential in my studies.

They presented Yeshua (Jesus) as the Jewish Messiah who fulfilled Torah shadows and types. The message resonated: Gentiles grafted in, Torah still relevant, Israel central yet completed through the Messiah.

I supported these ministries financially with annual thousand-dollars. I introduced them to God’s Learning Channel and opened doors at our synagogue for lectures and teaching. Audiences grew. From 2001 through the mid-2018, I questioned and researched every concept, never accepting anything blindly.

Going Home A Jew Returning

In 2008, a group of eleven of us traveled to Israel. One personal side goal was to meet Tovia Singer and explain why I believed Yeshua was the Messiah of Israel. That meeting was pivotal. It was merged with years of listening to Singer’s counter-missionary teachings.

I also listened to Rabbi Akiva Tatz on the future Messianic age. I listened to Manis Friedman, Lawrence Kellerman, Rabbi David Foreman, and Rabbi Zev Leff. Especially impactful was Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov’s insightful series on Edom. These experiences planted seeds of reevaluation.

The unbroken chain of Jewish tradition—father to son for over 3,300 years—proved decisive. Yemenite Jews, where children as young as eight can recite and discuss Tanakh in depth, embody this living transmission.

Deuteronomy 32:7 commands: “Remember the days of old. Consider the years of many generations. Ask your father, and he will tell you. Your elders will inform you.” I returned fully to Judaism, guided by the elders and the pure Torah.

The Teachers’ “Proofs” – Creative Layers, Not Plain Torah

The Messianic teachers crafted compelling connections between Torah events and Yeshua. Bill Cloud, in lectures I still own on CD, linked the Exodus timeline. He noted the departure around the 14th of Nisan. He also mentioned a “resurrection” alignment on the 17th. This suggests the Red Sea crossing represented a new beginning. Similar ideas in Eddie Chumney’s The Seven Festivals of the Messiah and other Hebrew Roots teachings. These teachings tie dates, like Noah’s ark resting on the 17th of the seventh month, to Nisan 17. They do this via calendar overlaps.

Jewish tradition tells a different story. The Passover meal and the 10th plague occurred on the 14th/15th of Nisan. The Exodus began on the 15th. The Red Sea split on the seventh day of Passover—the 21st of Nisan. The Song of the Sea was then sung. This is the climax of the festival week, commemorated as Shevi’i shel Pesach. Classical sources, midrash, and calendars from Chabad and Orthodox authorities confirm this. The seven days of matzah mark the total redemption. No mainstream Jewish source supports a 17th of Nisan crossing. The Messianic alignment uses a forced typological fit. It intends to parallel the resurrection. This relies on numerology rather than on explicit Torah text.

Passover: Bold Defiance Against Idolatry, Not Sin Atonement

The most significant distortion concerns the Passover lamb itself. Rico Cortes of Wisdom in Torah Ministries teaches that the blood on the doorposts formed a covenant. This covenant made Israel the adopted sons of God. He then draws a direct line ahead. Over one thousand years later, God sent a mediator. (JOB 9:33 )

This mediator was His own son, Yeshua. Yeshua would bring the empire of the Adversary to its knees. He would restore and expand the Kingdom of God to include all people. These are the people who choose to accept the blood of Yeshua as a covenant.” He connects this explicitly to John 1:29—“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

This interpretation imports New Testament theology onto a Torah event whose plain meaning is the opposite.

Will You Not Stone Us

Moses tells Pharaoh in Exodus 8:26, “It would not be right to do so. We shall sacrifice the abomination [to’evah] of the Egyptians to the Lord our God. If we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us?”

Rashi and other commentators explain that sheep and rams were sacred to the Egyptians. They associated these animals with deities like the ram-headed Amun-Ra or Khnum. Israelites were commanded to select a lamb on the 10th of Nisan. They kept it visibly in their homes for four days. Then, they slaughtered and roasted it publicly on the 14th.

Blood on the lintel and doorposts was a visible sign of separation. It showed faithfulness to Hashem amid a powerful idolatrous empire. God “passed over” the marked homes in judgment upon Egypt’s gods, protecting those who rejected idolatry.

Pesach Is Not A Sin Offering

The korban Pesach is not a sin offering (chatat), whose purpose is atonement. It shares some consumption rules with shelamim (peace offerings) and is eaten by the family. Yet, Rambam (Maimonides) and the Talmud classify it as a distinct category. It is a male yearling lamb or kid, roasted whole with no bones broken. It must be consumed entirely that night with matzah and bitter herbs. Any leftovers are burned by morning.

Shelamim fosters peace between the offerer, God, and the community, but does not primarily forgive sins. The Passover story is repeated at every Seder for over three millennia. It emphasizes redemption through courageous rejection of dominant false gods: “We slaughtered the god of the Egyptians before their eyes, and Hashem delivered us.”

The Lamb Is A False Deity

How, then, can it symbolize a figure whose death atones for the world’s sins? Tovia Singer often challenges Christian seminaries on this point. He argues that the lamb represented the false deity we publicly rejected and destroyed. It was not a savior whose blood we embraced for personal redemption. The Messianic overlay adds a layer foreign to the Torah’s emphasis on faithfulness and anti-idolatry.

Rico identifies as a Kohen (“Eliezer ben Kohen” in online profiles). When I first encountered him, interactions felt reserved and occasionally puzzling—scheduled lectures moved without clear notice. Friendship developed only after I introduced my Persian Jewish friend, Dr. Bijan Denishfar, who began financially supporting the ministry. Yet when I returned to traditional Judaism, warnings circulated: “Run from them as fast as you can.” No celebration of a Jew returning to the covenant. Instead, exclusion.

Esau, Ishmael, and the End-Times Clash

Bill Cloud’s teachings on Esau have evolved. In earlier Hebrew Roots circles, links were drawn between Esau/Edom and adversarial forces. These discussions often occurred in collaborations with Brad Scott(may his name be for a blessing). They sometimes included Islam.

In Esau Rising, Cloud describes the “spirit of Esau.” It is carnal and self-entitled, and hostile to divine order. This spirit manifests in modern moral decay, government overreach, and opposition to biblical values. In a March 2026 interview with Glenn Beck, Cloud discussed biblical patterns pointing to Islamic expansion. He mentioned “Arab kingdoms” and east winds as symbols of jihad. Nevertheless, he did not directly equate Esau to Islam.

After listening to that interview with my wife, I texted him: “Who is Esau?” His reply: “Genetically or spiritually?” This felt like an evasion. In earlier conversations, I raised questions about why the Jewish people as a whole never accepted Yeshua. These questions elicited warnings that certain rabbis “know a lot” and are “dangerous.”

Esau -Edom-Rome-Christianity

Rabbinic tradition offers clearer identification. Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov’s “Understanding Edom” series traces Esau to Rome. He identifies Herod the Idumean (of Edomite descent) as a Roman-installed ruler. The series discusses the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. It also mentions Constantine’s Christianization of the empire at Nicaea. This process incorporated pagan elements while distancing from Jewish practice.

Medieval rabbis used “Edom” as a coded reference for Christian Europe. Britain’s role in spreading Christianity through imperial expansion fits the “live by the sword” prophecy of Genesis 27:40. Replacement theology is the idea that the Church supplants Israel because Jews “rejected” the Messiah. It echoes exactly the hubris warned against in Obadiah and Malachi.

In the end-times framework of Tanakh and midrash, Esau (associated with the Christian West) and Ishmael (Islamic world) may clash, yet both ultimately target Jacob/Israel—the rightful heir. The strategy to seize the inheritance is simple: eliminate the legitimate son. Scripture and tradition declare that God will judge Edom; Jacob will prevail.

DNA Evidence: Receipts from Science and Tradition

The world often labels Jews as occupiers or thieves of the land. Both the Bible and science push back.

Genesis describes Noah surviving the flood with his three sons—Shem, Ham, and Japhet. Genesis 10 outlines the nations descending from them. My paternal line traces through my father’s E-M2 (E1b1a) haplogroup. This lineage originated in Africa, East or Central. It shows the highest diversity and frequency in West and Central Africa, with 70-97% in many Niger-Congo populations.

This haplogroup spread with Bantu migrations and later through the transatlantic slave trade. My FamilyTreeDNA test on this line shows zero matches at the deep Big Y level. There are dozens of downstream SNPs (CTS, FGC, FT, and other markers). This is not unusual. It indicates I am among the first in this specific, highly refined subclade to test at this resolution. Many variants are private or rare, awaiting future testers to create matches. This highlights the uniqueness and specificity of individual paternal stories.

My GrandFather Is a Cohen

My maternal Jewish line tells a different chapter. My uncles tested positive for the Cohen Modal Haplotype (CMH) in haplogroup J1-P58 (J-M267 subclade). Studies show this signature appears in roughly 45-60% of men claiming Cohen status. This is true across Ashkenazi and non-Ashkenazi (including Sephardic) communities. They share an estimated common ancestor from around 3,000 years ago in the Near East.

Frequencies are notable among Cohanim (around 46% across key studies) and higher in some Sephardic samples. Our family’s Sephardic Spanish roots, with the marker also appearing in German Ashkenazi contexts, show post-1492 expulsions and medieval migrations. This Levantine priestly continuity supports the unbroken chain from Aaron through the elders.

Science Proves The Torah True

Dr. Nathaniel Jeanson’s Traced emphasizes that all paternal Y-chromosome lines ultimately trace back to three primary founders. This echoes Noah’s three sons in a framework aligning with Genesis. Abraham’s covenant flows specifically through Isaac. It also flows through Jacob (the Shem line in the chosen branch: Shem → Arphaxad → Abraham). The physical land promises and role as Torah-bearers belong to Jacob’s descendants.

Jews and Arabs share significant ancient Levantine (Canaanite) ancestry, affirming indigenous ties to the region. The Black Sea deluge hypothesis provides geological context for flood traditions. Around 7,600–8,800 years ago, Mediterranean waters rapidly inundated a freshwater lake. This created catastrophic local flooding. It inspired regional deluge memories, though not a global event.

We All Have Three Fathers

My family embodies diversity within unity. It includes African paternal depth (E-M2 with private markers and now zero matches). It also includes Sephardic Cohen continuity (J1-P58). This does not contradict Torah. Rabbi Chaim teaches that every nation and individual has a unique place.

The covenant inheritance through Jacob remains with the physical descendants. It stays with the elders’ chain. It does not extend to symbolic replacements or “lost branch” claims. These claims lack DNA or historical receipts. No Messianic teacher I have supported has produced equivalent evidence of priestly or Abrahamic lineage.

The Betrayal That Exposed the Lie

Here is the most personal and damning evidence against the replacement theology that these teachers promote. For years, they accepted my financial support and the platforms I helped open.

When I returned to traditional Judaism—embracing the elders, the 3,300-year chain, and pure Torah without added layers—they cut contact. Warnings spread through their circles: “Run from Archie and his family. Have nothing to do with them.”

Rico, after receiving financial support from my introduced contacts, became friendly and participated in the distancing. Bill Cloud sidestepped direct questions. Others simply ghosted. If their message were truly biblical, they should have rejoiced.

Examples include the parable of the lost sheep or Ezekiel’s call for restoration of scattered Israel. A Jew returning to the covenant should be cause for celebration. Instead, fear and shunning prevailed. This mirrors historical patterns where those claiming to supersede Judaism treat returning Jews as threats rather than brothers.

This reaction reveals the core. It is not a genuine grafting-in that honors Israel’s ongoing chosen role. Instead, it is a subtle replacement. The original heirs become optional. New claimants take center stage through belief alone.

A Call to Return to the Source Not To Replace

To Bill Cloud, Rico Cortes, Eddie Chumney, Monte Judah, Avi Ben-Mordechai, and Diana Dye: Thank you for teaching me. Your teachings have added extra layers to the Torah. These contributions added shadows and types.

The plain text and Jewish tradition do not support these additions. The Passover lamb was about public defiance of Egyptian idolatry and faithfulness to Hashem—not a sin-atoning savior for the world. Rabbinic sources recognize Esau with Rome and its Christian successor. They do not view Esau merely as a vague “spirit” or shifting modern foe.

Claims of Gentiles as Ephraim or lost branch inheritors lack both biblical precision and DNA receipts. I sent materials, including Palvanov’s Edom lectures and genetic information. The responses were evasion or silence.

Betrayed: Messianic No More – But Forgiven

I funded, promoted, and trusted. Upon my return home, betrayal followed. That pattern exposes the theology more clearly than any debate.

To readers still in Messianic or Christian circles: You once walked a similar path. Examine the Torah on its own terms. Consult the elders as Deuteronomy commands. The Seder recounts the slaughter of Egypt’s gods and Hashem’s deliverance—not the embrace of a new deity for atonement. Esau faces judgment; Jacob inherits. DNA and archaeology affirm Jewish indigenous continuity in the land alongside Abraham’s broader seed, not occupiers inventing history.

Replacement Claims

The world is filled with noise and competing claims. Yet, the chain endures. Yemenite children master Tanakh. My uncles have confirmed Cohen markers. Rabbi Chaim provides steady guidance. Truth resides in the unbroken transmission from Sinai.

I emerged from Messianic shadows into the clear light of Torah. The journey was difficult but liberating. Others seeking authenticity find the same courage to ask the fathers and elders. Hashem’s plan includes space for every unique soul and nation. The Torah serves as a guiding light for all. It is not a system to be replaced or completed by later additions.

Footnotes / Sources

1. Rico Cortes, “The Covenant of Passover,” Wisdom in Torah Ministries.
2. Exodus 8:26 and Rashi on “to’evah.”
3. Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Passover Offerings.
4. Bill Cloud, Esau Rising and Glenn Beck podcast discussion (March 2026).
5. Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov, “Understanding Edom” series.
6. FamilyTreeDNA documentation on Cohen Modal Haplotype (J1-P58); studies including Hammer et al. (2009) showing ~46% prevalence among Cohanim.
7. Haplogroup E-M2 distribution: predominant in West/Central Africa (70-97% in many populations), common in African American lines.
8. Black Sea deluge hypothesis (Ryan & Pitman, ~7,600–8,800 years ago).
9. Deuteronomy 32:7.
10. Personal experiences and communications.

There is a profound Jewish teaching that reveals the biggest difference between the Torah’s worldview and the Christian narrative of sin and redemption.

It begins in the Garden of Eden.

When Adam and Eve are banished, God stations cherubim with a flaming sword that turns every way (mitahapechet) to guard the path to the Tree of Life (Genesis 3:24). The Torah does not say the Tree of Life was destroyed. It says the path to it was guarded. That path was never removed — it was protected.

Rabbi David Fohrman points out that the Torah deliberately echoes this same language in the story of Sodom (Parashat Vayera). The destruction of Sodom contains eight precise parallels to the banishment from Eden:

• Sending out a hand (shalach yad) to grab something
• Being sent out of one’s home
• The word mikedem (from the east)
• A garden-like setting
• Angels
• Divine fire
• The verb mitahapechet (turned over / reversed)
• And the eighth: guarding “the path” (derech) — in Eden to the Tree of Life, in Sodom to “the path of God, to do righteousness and justice” (tzedakah u’mishpat).

The Torah is telling us something powerful: Sodom is what happens when a society loses the path to the Tree of Life.

Sodom

Sodom had rules. It had order. It had justice (mishpat). But it had no tzedakah — no compassion, no care for the stranger, no regard for the vulnerable. They institutionalized evil. Their “justice” was to rape and rob guests so no outsiders would enter their paradise. When a society loses the balance between justice and kindness, it becomes Sodom — and it must be destroyed.

The path to the Tree of Life is not a yellow brick road. It is the lifelong conversation with God about how to live tzedakah u’mishpat — doing what is right and what is just, even when they are in tension.

Christianity tells a different story.

Inherited Sin Nature Original Sin

It says Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of Knowledge and brought sin and death into the world. Because of that original sin, humanity is fallen and needs a savior. Jesus dies to pay the penalty, and through faith in him we regain access to eternal life — the Tree of Life.

But the Torah never says Adam’s sin doomed all humanity to spiritual death. It never says we lost the Tree of Life forever. It says the path to it was guarded. And Proverbs 3:18 tells us exactly where that path is:

“She [the Torah] is a Tree of Life to those who grasp her, and whoever holds onto her is happy.”

The Tree of Life was never taken away. It was given to us at Sinai. Every time we study Torah, struggle with its commandments, and try to live tzedakah u’mishpat, we are walking the guarded path back to the Tree of Life.

Eat Freely Eat From All The Trees

Adam and Eve were not commanded to stay away from the Tree of Life forever. They were given a choice — and they chose knowledge over life. But God did not abandon them to eternal death. He gave them clothing, He gave them children, and ultimately He gave their descendants the Torah — the true Tree of Life.

Christianity’s need for Jesus as the solution to original sin only makes sense if you accept that Adam’s sin created a debt that no human being can repay. The Torah does not teach that. It teaches that we are not fallen beyond repair. We are distant, but the path is still open. Every generation can choose to walk it.

The Tree is For all Of Humanity.

That is why Judaism does not need a savior who dies for our sins. We already have the antidote. It is in our hands every time we open the Torah.

The real sin of Sodom was not just sexual violence. It was the complete loss of tzedakah — the refusal to care for the stranger, the vulnerable, the guest. When a society institutionalizes cruelty and calls it justice, it destroys itself.

The path back is still there. It is the path of Torah. It is the path of doing what is right and what is just.

And that path leads to the Tree of Life.

Call to Action: If this teaching resonates with you, subscribe for more explorations of the Torah’s deepest lessons. What part of the Eden or Sodom story has stayed with you the most? Share in the comments.

Hazan Gavriel ben David

To work and to safeguard and toil in this world.The Torah doesn’t start with thunder or miracles. It starts quietly: God places Adam in the Garden of Eden “to work it and to safeguard it” (Genesis 2:15). No lounging. No endless vacation. Even paradise had a job—le’ovdah u’leshomrah. Serve it, protect it. Before any fruit, before any snake, humanity’s first assignment is partnership: tend what’s good, guard against harm.

Rabbi David Fohrman teaches us to read with fresh eyes. In his series A Book Like No Other, he says start with the “big internal questions”—the ones the text begs us to ask, the ones that if unanswered, wreck the whole story. Not “how does a snake talk?” (that’s external, miracle stuff). But: Why put a forbidden tree in perfection? Why two trees—one of Knowledge, one of Life—with no obvious link? Why does Eve add “don’t even touch it” when God never said that? And after eating, why does God say, “Man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:22)—almost agreeing with the snake?

These aren’t plot holes. They’re invitations. The Torah isn’t hiding; it’s provoking: Who are we, really?

The Nachash

The snake—nachash—kicks it off. Not a cartoon villain with horns. Just an animal, but weirdly human. It walks upright (pre-curse), talks casually (no miracle like Balaam’s donkey), eats delicacies (not dust yet), and is “more cunning” than any beast. Arum—cunning. But the same word describes Adam and Eve: arummim, naked. Transparent, what-you-see-is-what-you-get. Cunning and naked? Opposites. Yet Torah uses one root. Why? The snake’s argument is tricky—it reminds Eve of the rule, then flips it: “Even if God said don’t eat… so what?” Not seduction by Apple. More like: rebel anyway. But naked too—raw, exposing desire without layers.

If you listed human traits—upright, speech, smarts, taste—the snake checks every box. So what’s the difference? Nothing obvious. Fohrman leaves it hanging: the nachash forces us to ask, “What makes us human?” Judaism says it’s the yetzer hara—the evil inclination—not external evil, but inner shine. The drive to acquire, know, and be more. Like Cain (Kayin—from qanah, to get, possess, build cities). Abel (Hevel—breath, mist, vanity). One grabs; one flows. The snake whispers: “Acquire it—why wait?”

Torah: The Psychology Of The Mind

Dr. Iain McGilchrist’s The Master and His Emissary asks: Why split the brain? Right side—holistic, alive to wonder. Left—narrow, tool-focused, grabs details. Why not one mind? Genesis hints: we’re built for tension. Snake as left-brain run amok—shiny logic over soul. God could’ve made us seamless. Instead, duality—like male/female, tov/ra. Psychology in the text: Eden’s lab, snake’s experiment.

But here’s the twist: Hashem didn’t want obedience or godhood. He wanted a relationship. Not rules first—closeness. Fohrman says Eden was “pre-conceptual bond”: hear the voice (not words), feel presence. Every tree says “thank Me”—eating becomes love. The command? Generosity with boundaries. Choice blooms from trust.

They ate because they wanted “insight… with no effort, just the fruit,” Rabbi Warren Goldstein says in his Tzav talk. Shortcut. God said no—because real growth? Struggle. “You have to toil… through the sweat of your brow.” Exile? Mercy. “This is why He had to send them out… so they would not eat from the Tree of Life and remain in this condition forever.” Not punishment—protection. Lock in shame, brokenness, eternal freeze? No. Work forces dependence: rain, food, kids—turn to Hashem. Build wisdom through sweat, not magic.

The Curse: No Prayer – No Cling- The World is Bliss

Rabbi Tovia Singer flips the serpent’s curse: “Everything will taste like dust… food’s everywhere… he never needs God.” Irony—abundance as poison. No prayer, no cling. Egypt’s Nile: reliable, no rain needed. Israel’s land: barren—pray or starve. Humanity’s “curse”? Toil that pulls us back. Snake sold independence; God wants partnership.

So the Tree of Life? Not fairy-tale immortality. It’s a sustained connection—guarded till we mature. Cherubim, flaming sword—not cruelty. Kindness: earn it through choice, labor, teshuva. Return starts pre-conceptual: hear His voice, cling like He’s your life (Deuteronomy 30:20). Love over knowledge. God circumcises hearts for love; rejoices over us.

Who are we? Not snakes—cunning without soul. Not gods—grabbing without gratitude. Partners: work the garden we lost, safeguard what we can. The Torah’s lesson? Psychology of desire, life as growth, closeness through struggle. No inherited sin needing blood. Just: draw near, choose love, hear the voice.

The snake’s question lingers: What’s the difference? Maybe none—if we stay shiny, self-sufficient. But God says: toil. Depend. Return. That’s the path back.

• Eden in harmony—Adam/Eve tending, animals everywhere:

biblicalmiracles.blogspot.com

The Lost Journal: Miracles in the Bible: Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden

• Classic paradise, vibrant and active:

worldhistory.substack.com

The Garden of Our Dreams – by George Dillard

• Rabbi Goldstein lecturing—warm, direct: (Use one from earlier searches if needed; imagine him mid-Tzav talk.)
• Fohrman explaining—thoughtful, engaging:

18forty.org

Rabbi David Fohrman: Does the Torah Teach Science? – 18Forty

• Divided brain—Master vs. Emissary:

cbc.ca

Neuroscientist argues the left side of our brains has taken over our minds | CBC Radio

• Singer intense—on the curse:

youtube.com

Hazan Gavriel ben David

In the Hebrew year 5786—corresponding to 2026 on the Gregorian calendar—the world appears to be spiraling toward a long-prophesied confrontation. Escalating conflicts in the Middle East, Iran’s nuclear ambitions framed as modern Persia, and public figures like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens reviving ancient accusations against the Jewish people create an atmosphere of existential tension. Amid this turbulence, one phrase repeatedly surfaces in Christian discourse: “turn the other cheek.”

Frequently invoked as the pinnacle of love, forgiveness, and non-violent resistance, it is presented as a universal moral imperative. It is important to understand what it means to turn the other cheek within this context. Yet for Jews, the phrase carries a very different origin, context, and implication—one rooted in the Jewish Bible rather than the New Testament.

Amid this turbulence, one phrase repeatedly surfaces in Christian discourse: “turn the other cheek.” Frequently invoked as the pinnacle of love, forgiveness, and non-violent resistance, it is presented as a universal moral imperative. Yet for Jews, the phrase carries a very different origin, context, and implication—one rooted in the Jewish Bible rather than the New Testament.

The expression draws directly from Lamentations 3:30: “Let him offer his cheek to the one who strikes him; let him be filled with reproach.”¹ This verse appears in the Book of Lamentations, traditionally attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, and is recited during Tisha B’Av services commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples.

Far from advocating perpetual passivity, the passage expresses profound grief and self-accountability in the wake of Jerusalem’s fall to Babylon in 586 BCE. Jeremiah portrays the calamity not as the triumph of Babylonian might or blind hatred, but as divine chastisement for Israel’s disobedience to Hashem’s covenant.

The call to “offer the cheek” is an act of humble acceptance: acknowledge the punishment, endure it, repent, and ultimately return stronger. It is grief with purpose—consequence from Hashem’s hand when the people stray, not random evil inflicted by human foes alone.

The Rabbi Was Wrong

Jesus alludes to a parallel concept in the Sermon on the Mount: “But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:39).² Christian tradition has interpreted this as a radical ethic of enemy-love, non-retaliation, and submission to unjust authority. Over two millennia, this teaching has shaped entire civilizations—often beautifully in acts of charity and forgiveness, but also problematically.

The phrase “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s” (Matthew 22:21) has at times been extended to mean unquestioning obedience to secular power, allowing governments to co-opt religious communities into tools of control. In its most extreme theological form, Christianity’s doctrine of original sin teaches that humanity is born inherently corrupt and evil, redeemable solely through faith in Jesus’ atoning death.

Good deeds alone are insufficient; without belief in the savior, even the most virtuous life leads to damnation. Generations raised on this framework have internalized deep guilt, shame, and fear—psychological burdens that have contributed to societal patterns of anxiety, division, and externalized blame.

There is no Meteator Job 9:33

Judaism stands in direct contrast. Jewish education begins with the affirmation that every human being is created b’tzelem Elohim—in the image of God (Genesis 1:27).³ Rabbi Efraim Palvanov and others draw an analogy to the atom: 99% positive energy (goodness, divine spark), with only 1% negative inclination (yetzer hara) serving as a test and motivator for growth.⁴ Children are taught that every soul carries unique goodness, every nation has a distinct purpose in Hashem’s plan, and no one is born damned.

Redemption comes through teshuvah (repentance), righteous action, and wrestling with God—not through vicarious atonement or belief in a divine intermediary. This foundational optimism fosters critical thinking, debate, and direct confrontation with the divine: Abraham argues over Sodom (Genesis 18), Jacob wrestles the angel (Genesis 32), Moses challenges Hashem at the burning bush and beyond.

Israel’s Repentances Israel’s Redemption

These theological divergences become stark in eschatological contexts. Ezekiel 37 depicts the valley of dry bones coming to life—a metaphor for the Jewish people’s physical and spiritual return from exile.⁵ Chapters 38–39 introduce Gog and Magog: a coalition led by Persia (modern Iran), invading Israel.

The attack arises not from inherent hatred, but from Israel’s incomplete repentance; Hashem deploys nations as instruments of awakening (Isaiah 59:20).⁶ There is no pre-tribulation rapture removing believers, nor an Antichrist deceiving Jews into building a false temple (a common misreading of Daniel 9). Instead, judgment falls, followed by redemption and gathering.

This prophetic rhythm resonates in Kabbalat Shabbat liturgy. Each Friday evening, Jews welcome the Sabbath by singing Psalms 95 through 99 in sequence: a crescendo of divine kingship, judgment on nations, trembling earth, fire preceding Hashem, and rejoicing in Zion.⁷

Psalm 97 commands: “You who love Hashem, hate evil” (v. 10)—an active stance against injustice, not meek endurance. Psalm 29 describes thunder shattering the cedars of Lebanon—symbolizing proud empires (today’s Iran and its allies) —crumbling before divine power.⁸ Jews are positioned as witnesses and testifiers, not passive recipients.

The Messiah Is Riding A Donkey

Zechariah 9:9 further illuminates the divide: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! … Behold, your king comes to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”⁹

Christians traditionally link this to Jesus’ triumphal entry on Palm Sunday. Rabbi Efraim Palvanov, however, emphasizes the chapter’s context: judgments on Damascus (reduced to a “ruinous heap” per Isaiah 17:1), Gaza, and Tyre precede the king’s arrival.

The “donkey” is not mere humility; it evokes Ishmael, described in Genesis 16:12 as “a wild donkey of a man; his hand against everyone.”¹⁰ In this reading, Islam—the spiritual heir of Ishmael—represents the untamed, rampaging force. The Messiah subdues this “wild donkey” after the conflagration, entering in victory. Not a past event of meek salvation, but a future triumph following war.

Christian eschatology frequently envisions a rapture removing the faithful, followed by surviving Jews “looking upon the one they have pierced” (Zechariah 12:10) and converting en masse—effectively ending Judaism.¹¹ This is classic replacement (supersessionist) theology: the Church as the “new Israel.”

Submissions Only

Islam, meanwhile, demands submission (the root meaning of “Islam”) or death for non-believers. Both paths ultimately seek the erasure of Jewish distinctiveness—Christianity through theological absorption, Islam through conquest or conversion.

As a descendant of a Cohen and chazan (cantor) for my synagogue since 2001, I have repeatedly entered pastors’ offices to ask why such teachings persist. The overwhelming majority cannot cite chapter and verse; they know inspirational themes but falter on difficult passages like 1 Thessalonians 2:14–15, where Paul accuses “the Jews” of killing Jesus and the prophets and being “contrary to all men.”¹²

Candace Owens, in her widely circulated interview with Tucker Carlson, labeled Israel a “demonic nation” filled with “gremlins and goblins”—a modern echo of ancient tropes.¹³ Yet many Christian homes display Israeli flags alongside American ones, even as Bibles remain unread.

Judaism = Responsibility

“Chosen people” status is not superiority but responsibility. Deuteronomy 7:7–8 clarifies: “It was not because you were more numerous than any other people that Hashem set His love on you … but it is because Hashem loves you and is keeping the oath that He swore to your fathers.”¹⁴ Jews are tasked to preserve Torah, question authority (divine and human), and testify to monotheism.

The Maccabees fought not only Greeks but Hellenized Jews who sought assimilation—shaving beards, abandoning mitzvot, embracing foreign culture. Today, similar pressures exist: some Jews pursue Christianity, believing “Jesus fixed it all.” I actively counter this narrative, as my forefathers did.

Glen Beck Knows

Glenn Beck grasps the urgency: Israel faces an “existential deadline” with Iran; “delay is the most dangerous choice.”¹⁵ Yet he frames the response through a Christian lens—Hashem using figures like Trump as proxies. Judaism requires no intermediaries; we act because preserving life is holy, and survival demands confronting evil head-on.

In the unfolding Gog-Magog scenario, the question is not Islam versus Christianity—who prevails? It is Torah truth versus replacement ideologies.

Genetic studies, such as those in Nathaniel Jeanson’s Traced, trace male Y-chromosome lineages to three primary founders (corresponding to Adam, Noah, and Shem), with Jewish lines enduring unbroken.¹⁶ Archaeology affirms Jewish presence in Jerusalem from King David’s era. Recent signs—the Star of Jacob comet in September 2024, the October 7, 2023 (Simchat Torah) massacre—align with prophetic patterns.

“Turn the other cheek” may apply to personal slights or insults, fostering humility and peace. But when faced with genocidal threats—rockets, vows of annihilation, or theological programs to erase Jewish identity—it becomes suicidal passivity. Lamentations teaches accountability amid exile: accept divine consequence, repent, and rebuild. Judaism commands: hate evil (Psalm 97), wrestle with Hashem, claim the covenantal land, and stand firm.

To my neighbor Jody—whose home flies both American and Israeli flags, yet whose Bible has gathered dust—read Ezekiel. Witness God thundering through history, not whispering platitudes. See the Jewish people not as victims or obsolete, but as enduring witnesses.

The world insists “no chosen people, no promised land.” But if the Tanakh is true, we are real, the land is real, and the battle is real. Redemption arrives when we fully return to Hashem—not through submission or replacement, but through teshuvah and fidelity to Torah.

Footnotes ¹ Lamentations 3:30 (ESV). ² Matthew 5:39 (ESV). ³ Genesis 1:27 (JPS Tanakh). ⁴ Based on teachings by Rabbi Efraim Palvanov and similar Jewish mystical/educational sources. ⁵ Ezekiel 37:1–14. ⁶ Isaiah 59:20; Ezekiel 38–39. ⁷ Psalms 95–99 (standard Kabbalat Shabbat order in Ashkenazi and many Sephardi traditions). ⁸ Psalm 29:5–9 (cedars as metaphor for empires). ⁹ Zechariah 9:9 (ESV). ¹⁰ Genesis 16:12 (ESV). ¹¹ Zechariah 12:10. ¹² 1 Thessalonians 2:14–15 (various translations). ¹³ Candace Owens, interview with Tucker Carlson, August 2025 (widely reported clips). ¹⁴ Deuteronomy 7:7–8 (ESV adapted). ¹⁵ Glenn Beck commentary, March 2026 video on Parsha Inspired channel. ¹⁶ Nathaniel Jeanson, Traced: Human DNA’s Big Surprise (Answers in Genesis, 2022).

Hazan Gavriel ben David

I was in the hot tub again, listening to the weekly Torah portion, the water cooling around me, steam long gone, but my mind still warm from the day. The phone screen glowed in my hand, and I hit play on another Rabbi Matityahu Glazerson video. His voice came through—thick Latvian-Russian accent, Hebrew words tumbling fast, English mixed in like it was fighting to keep up.

I smiled. Friends always said the same thing: “I tried, but I can’t understand a word.” They’d quit after thirty seconds. Me? I leaned in. Slowed the speed to 0.75. Paused. Rewound. “What did he say again?” I’d mutter, keyboard open, typing out every line I could catch. Hours went by like that. Not because I’m a genius. Because I love languages.

Mom’s Spanish at home. Hebrew from reading Torah. Even Laotian and Vietnamese customers when I was in the car business years ago—“Sabadee,” “Gao Nam Lai”—simple greetings that made people smile. I’m not fluent in any of them. I just love learning. Enough to hear past the accent. Enough to listen.

3300 Years Ago Torah Codes

That’s how I found the codes. Three thousand three hundred years ago, someone wrote down the Torah. Simple black letters on parchment. They had no computers. No satellites. No news feeds. Yet now? Those letters spell today’s headlines. Glazerson shows it on screen—grids of Hebrew text, red lines highlighting skips.

“Seventh of October” appears vertically in Deuteronomy. Perfect equidistant letter spacing. “Iran” sits right beside it. “Magog begins.” “Hamas invasion.” “War starts the morning after Hoshana Rabbah.” That’s the seventh day of Sukkot. Simchat Torah. October seventh, twenty twenty-three. We were dancing with the Torah scrolls—no walls, no guards—just like Ezekiel 38 described: an attack when Israel dwells securely. Iran? Persia. The head of the coalition. He had the matrix ready two days after the attack. Not after the fact. Before the world even processed what happened.

I went back to his older videos. Twenty fourteen: “MASHIACH – MAGOG- NATIONS.” “Jihad” right in the center. Syria, Palestinians, Arabs all clustered around it. “Mashiach” emerging from the chaos. Professor Robert Haralick’s statistical analysis—one in fourteen thousand chance for “end of days” and “Gog Magog” to cluster like that. One in three thousand five hundred for “Messiah” appearing right next to it. Not guesswork. Not retrofitting. Hidden in the text for millennia. Like the Urim and Thummim stones glowing again, but for our generation.

Math Genius Eliyah Rips

The real mind behind it all was Eliyahu Rips. Born in Riga, Latvia, in nineteen forty-eight. His mother survived the Holocaust by hiding in forests. His father fought with the Red Army against the Nazis. The family made it to Israel when he was a child. He earned a PhD in mathematics from Hebrew University and became a professor in geometric group theory—one of the sharpest minds in pure math.

But he started as a skeptic. When he first heard about people finding “codes” in Genesis, he thought it was nonsense. So he built his own software to test equidistant letter sequences (ELS). He expected to disprove it. Instead, he found rabbi names, birth dates, and death dates encoded in the text with probabilities that screamed design.

That brings us to the 1994 paper itself—the one that started everything. It’s called “Equidistant Letter Sequences in the Book of Genesis,” published in the respected peer-reviewed journal Statistical Science (Vol. 9, No. 3, pp. 429–438). The authors are Doron Witztum, Eliyahu Rips, and Yoav Rosenberg. Rips was the mathematician who developed the software and ran the tests.

The Urim and Thummim

The paper is short, dense, and technical, but its conclusion is stunning: when you treat the Book of Genesis as a two-dimensional array and look for equidistant letter sequences (letters spaced equally apart that spell meaningful words), you find pairs of related words appearing in close proximity far more often than random chance would allow.

The key experiment: they took a list of famous rabbis and their birth and death dates. Then they searched the Hebrew text of Genesis for ELS versions of the rabbis’ names and the dates. They measured how close those encoded names and dates appeared to each other in the text. To test if it was a chance, they ran 99,999 random permutations of the text and compared the results.

The observed clustering was so tight that the p-value came out at 0.00002—meaning the odds of it happening by random chance are about 1 in 50,000. The journal editors were impressed enough to publish it with a note saying they believed the results were real.

Holocaust Survivors to Math Pioneer

Rips didn’t set out to prove anything mystical. He was a pure mathematician trying to debunk what he thought was a silly claim. Instead, the data convinced him.

He co-authored the paper, defended it for years, and later collaborated with Glazerson on books and lectures. He passed away last July at seventy-five. From a child of Holocaust survivors to the pioneer who proved the codes are real. That’s not coincidence. That’s the Torah saying: “I wrote this for you. For now.”

Haralick—Brooklyn-born mathematician, former Boeing chair, pattern-recognition expert—ran his own independent tests. He confirmed: “This is real.” Harold Gans—twenty-eight years as an NSA cryptologist breaking enemy codes—tested rabbi names with birth and death places.

Intelligence That Can Be Trusted

His conclusion: “If this were enemy intelligence, I’d trust it completely.” Moshe Koppel—Israeli-American computer scientist—focused on authorship analysis, but his work supported the overall integrity of the text. These aren’t rabbis or mystics. They’re scientists. Skeptics who became believers because the math didn’t lie.

Three thousand three hundred years ago, Moses wrote down the Torah. Today, we see “October seven,” “Iran,” “Gog,” “Magog,” “Hamas,” “invasion” spelled out in the same letters. The grids. In precise skips. In probabilities that defy chance. Glazerson’s accent is thick. But I paused. I would have to replay the video over and over. I listened. And I heard.

End Of The Darkness

Here are some of Rabbi Glazerson’s most current Torah codes from his YouTube channel (as of March 2026). These matrices show the year 5786 tied to Messiah, repentance, Purim patterns, Passover, and Iran threats—right as events unfold. Pause the videos at these timestamps and see the letters line up yourself:

1. Festival Passover 5786-2026 Messiah Elijah in Bible Code (March 2026) Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DLJxuEAm3Q Key code: “Passover festival” + “Messiah Elijah” clustered. Timestamp ~1:40–1:49: Matrix zoom on “Messiah” in red. Ties to redemption after Gog-like trials.
2. The Head of the Month Nisan 5786 -2026 Messiah Son of Jesse in Bible Code (March 2026) Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1aq2IGJ7YM Key code: “Nisan 5786” + “Messiah Son of Jesse” (Davidic line). Timestamp ~0:44–0:52: Screen zoom on “Messiah” cluster. Points to 2026 as the redemption year.
3. Purim in the Letters Skip of this Year 2026 in Bible Code (March 2026) Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-y32kkeR9k Key code: “Purim” center with skip matching “5786.” Timestamp ~0:32–0:41: Grid shows skip pattern spelling year. Purim (hidden miracles) as an end-times pattern.
4. War with Iran 5786 -2026 Month Adar in Bible Code (March 2026) Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUgppSwgYVo Key code: “Iran” full writing + repentance in Adar 5786. Timestamp ~2:35–2:41: “Iran” highlighted near repentance. Direct Iran (Persia) war code for 2026.
5. List of Significant Bible Code Tables for this Year 5786 \ 2026 (February 2026) Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2Z5ts1xL1Q Key code: Multiple tables for 5786—repentance, Messiah, end-times. Timestamp ~0:14–0:25: List of codes including year 5786. Overview of 2026 as pivotal.

The Star of Jacob Prophecy Has Begun

These are the most recent/active ones with visible matrices (grids) — perfect for screenshots in your chapter. They emphasize 5786 (2026) as a year of the Messiah, repentance, and shaking related to Iran.

Christian friend, Messianic brother: You waited for signs in the sky or in dreams. We had them hidden in the text—spelling headlines before they happened. Torah is more than proof. This is footage shot live. This is the album we didn’t lend. It’s playing.

Hazan Gavriel ben David

Next chapter: The Bride Westward – Shabbat’s Final Rehearsal.

I was in meditation and the water was flowing through the steam that rose around me like incense from some forgotten altar. The water was still warm, the sky had gone completely dark, and the only sound was the low hum of the jets mixing with the quiet rhythm of my own breathing.

I closed my eyes and let Psalm 29 wash over me again, the way it does every Friday night when the house fills with voices for Kabbalat Shabbat. The voice of the Lord is over the waters. The God of glory thunders. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon; He makes Lebanon skip like a calf. Those words have been in my lungs for years now. Every week we sing them, the whole room turning west—not east, west. We bow low. We welcome the bride. Shabbat.

She arrives like a queen, and we are her attendants. I used to think east was the direction for Messiah, the rising sun, the final redemption. Turns out west is for Shabbat, for the bride who comes to rest with us. And Shabbat is the dress rehearsal for the world to come. The quiet before the storm. The peace before the shaking.

Lebanon and Iran

I opened my eyes and reached for my phone, the screen lighting up my face in the dark. October ninth, twenty twenty-four. Rabbi Efraim Palvanov had just released his lecture “Lebanon & Iran in the End of Days.” It was the same week Hassan Nasrallah’s underground command center in Beirut was flattened by eighty bunker-busters. Palvanov didn’t mince words: Lebanon is biblical ground zero.

The land appears more than seventy times in Tanakh. Solomon built the First Temple with Lebanese cedars and gold from Hiram, king of Tyre. Isaiah sixty-thirteen promises the glory of Lebanon will return to beautify the sanctuary in the end. But first it must fall. Isaiah ten thirty-four: “He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.”

The Adir—the Mighty One—is our own F-35 jets. Our thunder in the sky. October twenty-first, the IDF declassifies the find: beneath Al-Sahel Hospital in Dahiyeh, Hezbollah’s heartland, a massive bunker. Not medical. Nasrallah’s personal war chest. Five hundred million dollars in cash and gold bars. Tunnels connected to hospital rooms, beds, generators, long-stay facilities. Like the maternity ward has a secret vault for rockets and money.

Isaiah forty-five three echoes again: “I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places.” Cyrus received Babylon’s hidden wealth. Now Israel uncovers Lebanon’s. Not seized yet—still claims, still evidence, still sitting there—but exposed. The cedars are breaking. The shaking has begun. And every Friday night we sing it. Facing west. Bowing to the bride.

All Messianic Prophecy

Then Rabbi Tovia Singer released his February twenty-fifth, twenty twenty-six talk: “What’s Unfolding In Iran Right Now Is ALL Messianic Prophecy.” No Zohar mysticism, no comet timelines—just straight Tanakh. Ezekiel thirty-eight and thirty-nine: Persia—Iran—is Gog’s head. The coalition from the north comes when Israel dwells securely—no walls, no bars, just peace.

God responds with fire, earthquakes, plagues. Vilna Gaon taught the war begins around Hoshana Rabbah, the seventh day of Sukkot. Singer says October seventh was the spark. Simchat Torah. While we danced with the Torah scrolls, Hamas flooded in. Kibbutzim burned. Nova festival turned into a killing field. Over twelve hundred dead. But that is not random. It is the haftara we read every Sukkot: Gog invading during the festival. The sukkah’s flimsy roof reminds us that God is our shelter. Concrete roofs? That is what Iran trusts. And they are crumbling.

Singer calls this process Moshiach ben Yosef—the suffering and trauma before Messiah ben David arrives. Not a single person. A collective experience. October seventh is Jacob’s trouble. He points to surveys: twenty-five percent more Jews became religious in the aftermath. Mourning unites us. The land blooms again—exporting fruits like never before.

Ezekiel 36 Back in the Land Judah

Ezekiel thirty-six: “I will make you inhabited again… and you shall be like the garden of Eden.” Iran rises as Gog’s head, but the proxies fall first. Nasrallah eliminated. Hezbollah tunnels exposed. Houthi leaders killed. Syria flipped. Singer warns against date-setting—Daniel sealed the times—but the signs shout: the land lives, enemies gather against Jerusalem like a burdensome stone (Zechariah twelve), God strikes them down, and the nations learn to trust clouds, not concrete.

And just today—March eighteenth, twenty twenty-six—JNS publishes “The Hidden Strategy Behind The War In Iran” with Doron Spielman. He brings the focus right back to Lebanon. Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz declares: the Shiites (Hezbollah) will not return to southern Lebanon until Israeli residents in the north can live in security.

The Blue Pill

The old “blue line” border is indefensible. Israel seeks the Litani River as the new natural barrier—wider, deeper, much harder to tunnel under or launch rockets across. “Hezbollah equals Iran” on our northern border. The strategy is to degrade the IRGC so severely that the Iranian people themselves rise up and force regime change. The cedars are still breaking. The shaking has not stopped. It is ongoing. The bride is still coming.

Palvanov and Singer overlap with this fresh JNS report: Lebanon’s cedars breaking is part of Iran and Gog’s downfall. Psalm twenty-nine—we sing it facing west. The bride rides in. The American folk song says she’ll be coming ’round the mountain on six white horses. Nobody ever told me it’s Shabbat. Nobody said it’s prophecy. But we bow.

Christians quote Psalm twenty-three—green pastures, still waters. Christians never mention Lebanon. They never mention cedars skipping like calves. No Christian Prophet ever mentioned gold under a hospital. They retrofitted October seventh afterward—Psalm eighty-three enemies, Joel’s armies. But no holiday flag. No Sukkot haftara warning. We knew. You guessed.

You Have a Place Also

My Christian friend, my Messianic brother: the cedars broke. The gold blinked in the dark. Iran shakes. October seventh sparked Gog. Even now, in March twenty twenty-six, Israel is redrawing the map so Hezbollah can never return to the south.

Where was your warning? There was no comet in a prophecy. No seventy days. No haughty king like Trump—tool, not savior—pressing Iran while we sing the cedars falling every Shabbat. Ours had it all. Step by step. Visuals included. The bride is almost here. Bow west. Welcome her.

Hazan Gavriel ben David

Next chapter: Codes That Don’t Lie – Glazerson’s Torah Oracle.

Were all the nations gathered together, and kingdoms assembled, who of them would tell this or let us know of the first events? Let them present their witnesses, and they shall be deemed just, and let them hear and say, "True."	 	טכָּֽל־הַגּוֹיִ֞ם נִקְבְּצ֣וּ יַחְדָּ֗ו וְיֵאָֽסְפוּ֙ לְאֻמִּ֔ים מִ֚י בָהֶם֙ יַגִּ֣יד זֹ֔את וְרִֽאשֹׁנ֖וֹת יַשְׁמִיעֻ֑נוּ יִתְּנ֚וּ עֵֽדֵיהֶם֙ וְיִצְדָּ֔קוּ וְיִשְׁמְע֖וּ וְיֹֽאמְר֥וּ אֱמֶֽת:
10"You are My witnesses," says the Lord, "and My servant whom I chose," in order that you know and believe Me, and understand that I am He; before Me no god was formed and after Me none shall be.	 	יאַתֶּ֚ם עֵדַי֙ נְאֻם־יְהֹוָ֔ה וְעַבְדִּ֖י אֲשֶׁ֣ר בָּחָ֑רְתִּי לְמַ֣עַן תֵּ֠דְעוּ וְתַֽאֲמִ֨ינוּ לִ֚י וְתָבִ֙ינוּ֙ כִּֽי־אֲנִ֣י ה֔וּא לְפָנַי֙ לֹֽא־נ֣וֹצַר אֵ֔ל וְאַֽחֲרַ֖י לֹ֥א יִֽהְיֶֽה: Yeshayahu (Isaiah) - Chapter 43:9-10

Dear Glenn Beck,

As you prepare your March 19 special on the Twelfth Imam and Islam’s potential to “destroy the world,” I urge you to reconsider the narrative through the lens of authentic Judaism. The Bible—Torah and Tanakh—speaks solely of Israel, not Christianity or Islam as divine sequels. Both faiths, while tools in God’s plan per Rambam (Maimonides), are represented as commentaries that distort the eternal covenant.

This essay, structured as a research paper, applies critical tests to their foundations, examines their histories of atrocities against Jews, and reveals how current events, including October 7, fulfill prophecies like the war of Gog and Magog.

If the Bible is true, the conflict we witness—pitting Christianity (the “Sun religion” with solar symbols like Sunday worship) against Islam (the “Moon religion” with lunar calendars)—is World War III, a battle over righteousness waged by those changing God’s word. Yet Israel has allies, including the lost tribe of Ephraim, and divine receipts in our unbroken history.

The Falsehood of Islam: Jay Smith’s Critical Test

Jay Smith, a Christian apologist, dismantles Islam’s historical claims in his lecture “The Man, The Book, The Place.”[^1] Smith argues Muhammad lacks contemporary evidence: no 7th-century references exist; biographies like Ibn Ishaq’s (d. 767 CE) appear 195 years after Muhammad’s purported death in 632 CE.

Hadith collections (e.g., Sahih al-Bukhari, d. 870 CE) emerge 240+ years later, with manuscripts from the 11th–15th centuries. Textually, early Arabic script lacked vowels and diacritics until the 8th–9th centuries, making original readability dubious. Archaeologically, Mecca shows no pre-7th-century evidence as a trade hub; early mosques face Petra, not Mecca, until 750 CE. Smith concludes that Islam’s narrative was fabricated under Abbasid rule (post-750 CE).

Truth The Witness of Israel

This test—demanding contemporary historical, textual, and archaeological proof—exposes Islam as a post-biblical invention, not God’s word. Smith further highlights newfound falsehoods: No early qiblas (prayer directions) or mosque towers/minarets face Mecca; all pre-750 CE sites point north to Petra in Jordan or Jerusalem, suggesting Mecca was a later construct.

For instance, researcher Dan Gibson’s GPS mapping of over 100 early mosques shows deviations of 30–40 degrees from Mecca, aligning instead with Petra’s fertile northern Arabian landscape. Rituals like circumambulating the Kaaba counterclockwise seven times mirror the Jewish siege of Jericho in Jordan (Joshua 6), and running between Safa and Marwa (Quran 2:158) is tied to Jerusalem’s Mount Scopus and Moriah, not the Meccan hills.

No 7th-century trade routes mention Mecca; ancient maps highlight northern Jordan/Syria. The Quran’s geography describes streams, fields, and trees—incompatible with Mecca’s barrenness—and its Arabic is Nabataean/Aramaic from Jordan, not a Meccan dialect.

No Muhammad

Falsehoods about Muhammad include claims that there are no contemporary references; “Muhammad” (with vowels) didn’t exist in 7th-century script—”Mhm” or “Mhmd” was a title meaning “praised one,” applied to Jesus in Christian and Jewish texts. Early non-Muslim sources (e.g., 634 Doctrina Jacobi) describe northern figures, not a Meccan prophet. Biographies and hadith are 200–800 years late, with no eyewitnesses.

For the Quran, no 7th-century manuscripts exist; commentaries like Al-Tabari’s (923 CE) are 300 years removed, and the sequences only make sense in reverse. Mecca lacks pre-7th-century evidence; the Zamzam well is modernly supplied, not miraculous, and no prophet burials were found in the Kaaba excavations. If Islam has this many problems, Glenn, then what is the truth about Christianity? The same critical lens reveals similar fabrications, as explored below.

Applying the Test to Christianity: Paul’s Invention

The same scrutiny reveals Christianity’s foundations as equally fabricated, centered on Paul, a Roman citizen who claimed Pharisaic training under Rabbi Gamliel (Acts 22:3).

Scholars like James Tabor and Markus Vinzent argue that Paul “invented” Christianity, transforming Jewish messianism into a Gentile religion.[^2] Paul, born Saul of Tarsus, was a Roman citizen.

(Acts 22:25–29), Yet critics note inconsistencies: he shows poor knowledge of Hebrew, misquoting the Tanakh (e.g., altering Jeremiah 31:32 in Hebrews 8:9 to claim that God “rejected” Israel).[^3] Rabbi Gamliel, a liberal Pharisee advocating tolerance (Acts 5:34–39), contrasts Paul’s claimed persecution of Christians (Acts 9:1–2), suggesting fabrication.

The Truth About Paul

Biblical scholarship (e.g., Higher Criticism), where experts like Bart Ehrman question Pauline authorship: six letters (Ephesians, Colossians, etc.) are pseudepigrapha, post-70 CE forgeries.[^4] Tovia Singer notes Paul’s “mystery” revelations (Ephesians 3) invent doctrines absent in the prophets.

[^5] Like Islam’s late compilations, Christianity’s New Testament canonized centuries later (Council of Nicaea, 325 CE), borrowing pagan elements (e.g., virgin birth from Roman myths). Archaeology yields no contemporary evidence of Jesus, mirroring Smith’s critique of Mecca.

A historical overview of Paul highlights his self-description as a Pharisee “blameless” in law observance (Philippians 3), yet he shifted to “spirit” over “flesh,” rejecting circumcision for Gentiles (Galatians).[^6] He criticized rivals as “false brothers” or “deceitful workmen” (2 Corinthians 11), using allegories like Sarah and Hagar to demean Torah advocates. Interpolations, such as 1 Thessalonians 2:14–16 (post-70 CE), accuse Jews of divine wrath—un-Pauline language.

Biblical Scholars

Professor Nina E. Livesey further deconstructs Paul in her book Galatians and the Rhetoric of Crisis: Paul – Demosthenes – Cicero, applying a “rhetoric-of-crisis” framework to argue that Paul’s letters are mid-2nd-century pseudepigrapha, possibly from Marcion’s school around 144 CE.[^7] In her analysis, Livesey compares Paul’s strategies to those in Demosthenes’ and Cicero’s Philippics, where orators used hyperbole, rebuke, and irony to generate urgency and moral outrage.

For instance, Paul employs gross exaggerations, claiming the Torah “does not come from God” but from intermediaries and was provisional, or that law-keepers are “under a curse” (Galatians 3), not as sincere theology but as rhetorical devices to demean opponents and assert divine authority. She structures her chapters by first illustrating stylistic features from the Philippics—such as binary oppositions (e.g., slavery vs. freedom, flesh vs. spirit)—and then applying them to Galatians, showing how Paul constructs crises to undermine Torah observance among Gentiles.

Livesey highlights extreme language, like suggesting opponents self-castrate (Galatians 5) or comparing them to Satan (2 Corinthians 11), as encomium (self-praise) combined with derogation, prioritizing persuasion over historical truth. Details like the Damascus escape (2 Corinthians 11:32–33) are treated as literary tropes, recycled from the Tanakh (e.g., Rahab in Joshua or Michal in 1 Samuel), rather than as factual events.

The letters depend on Acts and the Gospels, postdate them, and invent Christianity amid 2nd-century debates following the Bar Kokhba revolt (135 CE), subordinating Torah to new doctrines to facilitate Gentile inclusion. Reviews note Livesey’s work provides a viable explanation for Paul’s anti-circumcision stance, viewing the Torah as a “pawn” in rhetorical battles rather than a genuine critique of Judaism.[^22][^23]

Historical Atrocities: Christianity and Islam Against Jews

Both religions’ histories are marred by atrocities against Jews, contradicting their “peace” claims.

Christian Persecutions (from “The History of Christian Persecution of Jews” video):[^8]

• 1096 Rhineland Massacres: First Crusade kills 12,000 Jews; communities are either forced to commit suicide or are slaughtered.
• 1196 Worms Massacre: 800 Jews killed, synagogue burned.
• 1348–1349 Black Death: Jews blamed for poisoning wells; 2,000 burned in Strasbourg.
• 1492 Spanish Expulsion: Alhambra Decree forces 200,000 to convert or flee; Inquisition tortures conversos (last execution 1781).
• 1648 Cossack Uprising: 100,000 Jews killed in Ukraine/Poland.
• 1881 Russian Pogroms: Hundreds killed post-Tsar assassination.

Tovia Singer details Church supersessionism: Jews “replaced” for rejecting Jesus, fostering exile as “proof” (e.g., Ezekiel 38 misapplied).[^9]

Muslim Persecutions (comparable historical list):[^10]

• 622–627 Medina: Muhammad expels/massacres Jewish tribes (Banu Qurayza: 600–900 beheaded).
• 1066 Granada Massacre: Thousands killed in Muslim Spain.
• 1106 Jerusalem: Persecution by Turks.
• 1941 Farhud (Baghdad): 180+ Jews killed, 1,000 injured.
• 1947 Aden Riots: 80+ Jews killed.
• 1948–1950s: Expulsions from Arab countries; 900,000 flee.
• Mamluk Era (13th–16th CE): Mob violence, forced conversions.

Both reflect replacement theology: Christianity as “new Israel,” Islam as final revelation, erasing Judaism.

Jewish Eschatology: Torah on Christianity and Islam

Torah views both as divinely permitted but distortive. Rambam (Mishneh Torah) states that God allowed them to prepare nations for monotheism and the Messiah.[^11] Mishnah (Avot) says Jews scatter to gather converts.[^12] Yet both Messiahs end Torah: Christian Jesus “fulfills” the law into obsolescence (Hebrews 8:13, misquoting Jeremiah 31).[^13] Islamic Mahdi, with Isa (Jesus), enforces sharia, subjugating/destroying non-Muslims, including Jews (hadiths).[^14]

Bible predicts Sun-Moon conflict: Christianity (Sun: Sunday, Easter solar ties) vs. Islam (Moon: lunar calendar). King David prayed for Jerusalem’s peace amid enemies (Psalm 122), foreseeing 2,500 years of strife.[^15] Jewish history (Jew of the Week) proves resilience: from Babylonian exile to modern return.[^16]

If the Bible is true, both religions change God’s word (Deuteronomy 4:2), waging WW3 over righteousness. October 7 marks the beginning of Gog-Magog: Tovia Singer sees Ezekiel 38–39 unfolding (Iran/Persia leads).[^17] Rabbi Glazerson’s Torah codes link October 7 to Gog-Magog.[^18] Palvanov notes Iran in prophecy (Ezekiel 38).[^19]

Daniel 7, Esau’s Role, and Reconciliation

Daniel 7 speaks of Israel’s anointed king: a “one like a son of man” receives everlasting dominion (Daniel 7:13–14), given to the “saints of the Most High” (Daniel 7:27), symbolizing Israel’s sovereignty. Esau (Edom/Christianity) is a patriarch; rabbis like Kessin see Trump as Esau’s gilgul, subduing evil (Iran defeat fulfills Yalkut Shimoni).[^20] Allies include Ephraim (lost tribes).

Rabbi Fohrman’s “A Book Like No Other” uses the Jacob-Esau story to urge reconciliation: transcend scarcity and recognize divine grace.[^21]

Glenn, stop running. The two Messiahs lead to the end of the Torah; the Bible’s war is here. Join Israel’s receipts—eternal covenant.

With respect,
Gabriel Ben David
Hazan, Esnoga Beit Hashoavah
Amarillo, Texas

[^1]: Jay Smith, “The Man, The Book, The Place” (YouTube, 2020).
[^2]: James Tabor, “Paul and Jesus” (YouTube, 2022); Markus Vinzent, cited in Derek Lambert and Robert M. Price, “Pauline Letters After Acts?” Journal of Higher Criticism 20, no. 2 (2025).
[^3]: Tovia Singer, “Paul Was Not a Pharisee” (YouTube, 2015).
[^4]: Bart Ehrman, “Did Paul Write Ephesians?” (Blog, 2022).
[^5]: Tovia Singer, “Bible Problems in Christianity” (YouTube, 2020).
[^6]: “Historical Overview of Paul the Apostle” (YouTube, 2020).
[^7]: Nina E. Livesey, “Paul’s Rhetoric in Galatians” (YouTube, 2020).

Introduction

In “Milestones to Emmaus,” Warren Gage interprets the ninth plague—the three days of darkness in Egypt (Exodus 10:21–23)—as a symbolic “three days of death” followed by an “arising” into light, foreshadowing Jesus’ crucifixion darkness (Luke 23:44–45) and resurrection. He describes the darkness as “thick” and “felt,” entombing Egyptians in place, while Israelites had light.

Gage ties this to creation (light conquering chaos, Gen 1:2–4) and sees it as God humiliating Egyptian sun god Ra, emblematic of death overcome by gospel light (2 Tim 1:10). The “symbol: darkness” section links darkness to judgment/Sheol, with light as resurrection.

From the Tanakh’s original Hebrew, historical context, and Jewish tradition, this milestone is not a prophecy of Jesus’ death, burial, and third-day resurrection. It’s a targeted plague demonstrating God’s supremacy over Egyptian idols, separating Israel from Egypt’s spiritual darkness. Let’s break it down.

The Three Days of Darkness: Judgment on Egypt’s Gods, Not Resurrection Symbolism

Exodus 10:21–23 describes the plague: Moses stretches his hand, causing “thick darkness” over Egypt for three days. Egyptians could not see or move, while Israelites had light in Goshen. The darkness was palpable (“felt”), emphasizing its supernatural intensity.

Gage views this as a “three-day death” where Egyptians are “entombed” and “arise” after. He parallels it to Jesus’ three hours of darkness and resurrection light. However, the text shows no death or revival. Egyptians are immobilized but alive; darkness ends abruptly, with no “resurrection” language. The three days emphasize completeness—a common biblical motif for full duration (e.g., Jonah 1:17).

Jewish exegesis (Rashi, Ibn Ezra) sees the plague as humiliating Ra (Amun-Ra), Egypt’s sun god. Darkness mocks their deity, proving YHWH’s power (Exod 12:12: “judgment on all the gods of Egypt”). Midrash (Shemot Rabbah) adds practical effects: darkness hid the Israelites while they gathered Egyptian treasures, or punished informers. No resurrection motif; it’s divine separation (light for Israel, dark for Egypt).

Contrast with Jesus: literal darkness during crucifixion, death, burial, and rising. Here, no equivalent sacrifice or revival. The plague is national judgment, not personal atonement.

Symbol of Darkness: Chaos and Judgment, Not Tomb and Resurrection

Gage correctly notes darkness symbolizes chaos and death in the Tanakh (Gen 1:2; Job 10:21–22; 1 Sam 2:9). Light represents life/God (Ps 84:11; Mal 4:2). He claims dawn = resurrection (Luke 24:1), and eternal light in the new creation = no more death (Rev 22:5)

Yet, the Tanakh uses darkness for divine judgment, not always death-resurrection. The plague’s darkness is temporary humiliation, not entombment. Israelites’ light shows favor, not revival. Rosh Hashanah liturgy contrasts light/dark as good/evil, but no third-day resurrection link.

Gage’s “analogy of faith” ties this to Abraham’s covenant (Gen 15:13–14), arguing that elders knew God would judge Egypt after 400 years. True, but the three days are diplomatic (as in Milestone 10), not analogical resurrection. Rabbi David Fohrman’s reading counters Gage: the three days echo Jacob’s honorable burial procession (Gen 50), an ideal peaceful exit Pharaoh rejected.

Christianity’s Interpretation: Typology Over Textual Intent

Gage imposes the New Testament onto Tanakh, turning a plague into a foreshadowing of crucifixion. The three-hour darkness at the cross (Luke 23:44–45) is a divine sign, but Exodus’ three days target Ra, not symbolize the tomb. Supersessionism claims “fulfillment” where Jewish tradition sees God’s ongoing sovereignty.

Paul’s “according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor 15:4) lacks direct support here. Jonah’s three days (Matt 12:40) is closer, but deliverance, not death-resurrection.

Reclaiming the Narrative: God’s Power Over Idols

Exodus 10 teaches YHWH’s supremacy—darkness humbles Egypt’s gods, protecting Israel. Themes of separation (light/dark) and providence resonate in Jewish life. Midrash emphasizes moral lessons: darkness punished evil and rewarded good.

For seekers, study midrash and commentators—the “lecture notes” that illuminate the text. The plague wasn’t a preview of resurrection; it was a victory over false gods, affirming monotheism.

Comparison Table: Gage’s Claims vs. Tanakh Reality

Aspect	Gage’s Interpretation	Tanakh/Jewish View
“Entombment” followed by “arising” as a resurrection type	“Entombment” followed by “arising” as resurrection type	Temporary judgment humiliating Ra; no death/revival
Symbol of Egypt	Sheol/land of graves; three-day journey as resurrection	Oppression/idolatry; journey for worship/separation
Analogy to Abraham	Three-day journey like Isaac’s “sacrifice” and sparing	Strategic diplomacy echoing Jacob’s honorable burial
Connection to Jesus	Three Days of Darkness	No messianic link; national deliverance, not individual rising

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Hazan Gavriel ben David

I was meditating this morning—eyes closed, water warm around me, mind quiet—and it hit me: the Torah’s just a family album. Not a rulebook. Not a secret code. A scrapbook full of real people, real fights, real promises. And for two thousand years, Christianity and Islam have been flipping through it, scribbling in the margins: “This is about us now.”

But here’s what they don’t tell you: neither Jesus nor Muhammad shows up in those pages. Not once. The Tanakh—our Bible—ends with Malachi. There is No New Testament. No Quran. No “new covenant” takeover. Just… Israel. Judah. Ephraim. Edom. Ishmael. Keturah’s sons. All the family branches.

Israel My Witness

The only names mentioned? Jews—our people—and the nations that either stand with us or stand against us. Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia. Moab, Ammon, Edom. Support Israel? Get blessed. Hate us? Get burned—like Obadiah’s stubble. But nowhere does it say “a new people will rise and replace you.” No verse: “After two thousand years, Gentiles take the throne.”

Instead? Deuteronomy 30: “When you return… the Lord will gather you from all nations.” Not “replace you.” Not “hand it off.” Gather. Restore.

Christianity adds a sequel—says “Jews rejected, we’re in.” Islam says, “Torah corrupted, Quran corrects.” But if the Bible’s true? Their books aren’t in it. They’re footnotes they wrote themselves.

Every Nation Has A Place

And here’s what they miss: the Torah doesn’t need ’em. It already has room—every nation gets a blessing, a role. Ishmael’s twelve princes (Genesis 17:20). Keturah’s gifts sent east (Genesis 25:6). Ephraim’s fruitfulness (Genesis 49). Even Persia—Iran—descends from Shem through Aram (Genesis 10:22). Family. Cousins.

Archaeology backs it. Merneptah Stele, 1200 BCE—”Israel is laid waste, his seed is not.” First outside mention. Real. Dead Sea Scrolls? Our text—unchanged. DNA? Ashkenazi, Sephardi, Mizrahi—traces to Canaan. No break. No replacement.

Envy The Poison

Envy? That’s the poison. Esau thought Jacob stole everything—raged. But Jacob bowed, gave gifts: “I have enough.” Reconciliation. Torah says: blessings aren’t zero-sum. Help your brother shine; yours gets brighter.

World today? Wars, migrations, tech—it’s shaking the old stories loose. Iran falls, nations rise, Trump hands back land. Like Obadiah: fire purifies. Esau’s stubble? Old lies. Flame? Truth.

The Family Reunion

Hashem’s plan? Not conquest. Reunion. Jews reveal the blueprint. Everyone else? Step up. Use your gift. No need to steal.

So yeah—help ’em find their page. “Here’s yours. Here’s mine. Let’s read together.” No replacement. Just family.

Isaiah 19:25 seals it: “Blessed be Egypt, My people, Assyria the work of My hands, Israel My inheritance.” And Zechariah 8:23? “In those days, ten men from every language of the nations shall take hold of the hem of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'”

Big table. Room for all.

Hazan Gavriel ben David