June 28, 2025 • 46 mins
Is there something in the Bible that confuses or troubles you? You can turn to Dr. Michael Rydelnik for some help. Each Saturday morning on Open Line, he provides responses straight from Scripture. Join the conversation this weekend.
Mentioned this hour:
Blogpost: Israel Is Not Committing Genocide in Gaza by Michael Rydelnik
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Middle East news: honestreporting.com
Middle East news: timesofIsrael.com
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:09):
When life gets tough, it's hard to receive any encouragement.
How can how can we keep hearing from God even
in tough times? Stay with me. We'll talk about that
in just a moment. Hello, friends. Welcome to Open Line,
Moody Radio's Bible study across America. My name is Michael Wright.
I'm the academic dean and professor of Jewish studies and
(00:31):
Bible at Moody Bible Institute. I'm so grateful to be
joining you around the radio kitchen table. And we're talking
about your questions about the Bible, God, and the spiritual life.
If you have a question and you'd like to call
the phone number, here is (877) 548-3675. Let me give you
(00:52):
that number once again. You can write it down 83675. Also,
I'd encourage you if you've had a question and you
wanted to get through but weren't able to. This is
the best time to call right here at the beginning
of the hour. Call (877) 548-3675. Best time to get through.
(01:17):
Of course. Our senior producer is Tricia McMillan. Ably assisted
today by Lisa and Tahira. Omar Mendoza is our tech guy.
Today Rihanna is answering the phones. Thanks for all that
this team does to make Open Line an effective program.
Thank you so much for all that. Again the phone
number (877) 548-3675. Time to get yourself a cup of coffee.
(01:43):
I've got mine right here. Open your Bible. We're about
to study the scriptures together. I have a friend who
recently lost a job. It was sudden. It was unexpected.
And there is a great deal of anger and bitterness
(02:03):
and hurt that came about as a result. And it
wasn't just anger at his former employer, but angry at God.
How could God allow this to happen? And as a result?
There is. It almost became a bitterness in his heart
(02:26):
against the Lord. Sometimes God wants to give us encouragement.
He wants us to be lifted up. Even in tough times.
It doesn't matter if it's loss of a job. It
doesn't matter if it's maybe even a difficulty with a
relationship or an illness or whatever it is that you
(02:48):
feel or I feel might be oppressing us. How do
we get encouragement from God? I was thinking about this
the other day. I've been reading through the book of Exodus,
and I came to Exodus chapter six, and it's where
God promises because he heard the outcry of of the
Israelite slaves in Egypt, and he promises that he's going
(03:11):
to send Moses, and he wants Moses to encourage the
people because they were slaves and they were oppressed, and
they were facing such difficulties. And God said through Moses,
tell the Israelites, I am the Lord, and I will
deliver you from the forced labor labor of the Egyptians.
(03:32):
This is Exodus six six and following and free you
from slavery to them I will redeem you with an
outstretched arm and great acts of judgment. I will take
you as my people, and I will be your God.
You will know that I am the Lord your God,
who delivered you from the forced labor of the Egyptians.
I will bring you into the land that I swore
(03:53):
to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will
give it to you as a possession. I am the Lord.
God gave a great encouraging message to a hard pressed
people facing a tough time. And I want to focus
on verse nine. This is what struck me. Moses told
(04:15):
this to the Israelites, but they did not listen to
him because of their broken spirit and hard labor. That
just shook me. God had the most encouraging, uplifting, most
positive message for them, and they couldn't listen because of
(04:37):
their broken spirit, because of their suffering, because of how
tough times were. I was really struck by how true
that is in our lives. How do we make ourselves
open to God Even when we feel broken down in situation,
how do we stay open to the encouragement of the
(05:00):
Lord when we're broken? How do we avoid the mistake
that the Israelites made when they couldn't hear the encouraging
message from Moses? Well, I thought about that a good bit,
and I thought back to a time in my life
it was about 25 or 30 years ago. I went
through the toughest time in ministry that I'd ever faced,
and I was so unbelievably discouraged. And I wanted to
(05:27):
hear from the Lord, and I didn't feel like I
was receiving any encouragement. And so I thought back, how
did I keep it together in that tough time when
I wanted to throw it all out? How did I
stay open even when I felt broken? And as I
contemplated that experience from all those years ago, I came
(05:48):
up with three principles I think we should all live
by when we're going through tough times. And here they are.
First of all, focus on the Word of God that
we can't stop being in the word. When life gets tough,
we have to stay in the Word of God. It's
(06:09):
essential that we read the word. Study the word, hear
the word. Uh, we need to receive the Word of
God because it reveals God's character, what he's really like.
It reminds us of the truths of of God's Word
and the that God is going to work all things
together for good. We need to be in the word
(06:29):
when we're going through tough times. Instead of saying, I
am so fed up with what God has to say,
I'm going to. Throw this out. And so, uh, John 1717,
the Lord Jesus said, sanctify them in the truth of
his disciples, of his followers. Your word is truth. Whenever
(06:54):
life is going hard, tough or struggling, we have to
be reminded constantly of what is actually true. So we
have to stay in the Word of God. Secondly, we
have to stay faithful no matter what. Sometimes we use
hard times as an excuse to say, oh, I've been
trying to be so faithful and obedient to the Lord,
(07:18):
but you know, I'm being persecuted. I'm facing tough times. What?
He's abandoned me. I'll just abandon him. No. It's better
for us to be obedient in tough times rather than
use it as an excuse for disobedience. I was taken
by the concept in the book of First Peter. In
(07:43):
First Peter it says that what credit is there if
you sin and are punished and you endure it if
you deserve it. That's he says, if you deserve it,
what good is it if you do? If you do that,
it is better, according to first Peter, to be obedient
(08:06):
to God. Uh, it's better to suffer for doing good
if that should be God's will than for doing evil.
First Peter 317. It's so important that we stay faithful
and obedient even when life is hard. Instead of saying, yeah, well,
life is hard and that's that's natural for when we're
(08:28):
being disobedient to God. No, we are going to stay
faithful that that is what brings honor to God, that
we're going to stay faithful no matter how hard life gets.
And so first, if we want to be open when
life is going tough, well, first of all, we need
to stay in the word. Secondly, we have to stay obedient, obedience.
Stay faithful. And the third lesson I learned was we
(08:51):
need to receive the encouragement of God's faithful people. In
Hebrews 1025, it tells us not to forsake the assembling
of ourselves together, as is the habit of some. Because
they were facing persecution, they were facing tough times, and
they were abandoning their community. He says. It's important that
we not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is
(09:15):
the habit of some, that we might receive encouragement and encouragement.
That's the point of Hebrews 1025. It's when we're really
broken down and struggling. We need to be in community
because it is God's people that will bring us hope
and encouragement and strengthening. We need to be in our community.
(09:39):
I look back at that tough time in my life
and it was my congregation, my community of of faithful
followers of Jesus who knew the tough time I was
going through and kept bringing me encouragement. It was my pastor.
It was my friends. It was what I needed to
hear because they were the ones that God was using
(10:00):
to bring me encouragement. So how do we stay open
when we're broken? Most important, we have to be in
the word. Stay faithful and stay in our community. Be
faithful in our community. And that's what God will bring
us through the tough time and finally lift us up.
(10:32):
I hope that's an encouragement to you. If you're going
through a tough time. We're going to go to the
phones right now. We're going to talk to Dan in Tipton, Indiana,
listening on WGN. Welcome to Open Line, Dan. How can
I help you today?
S2 (10:45):
Hi. Good morning Michael. We're doing a summer series on
the canonical structure of the Psalter, using your team's The
Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy, which we just love. And
speaking of one two Samuel, chapter 23, verse one and two.
David's favorite thing was to write about Messiah. We are
(11:07):
told in the book. And yet there was a little
change to a word that went, rendered the word concerning it,
rendered it on high. And that's just a fascinating thing.
And I don't know if you want to talk about that,
but what I'm curious about is, is there a way
for me to find the original Septuagint version or whatnot
(11:28):
that shows it as concerning, as opposed because everything that
I read shows it as on high?
S1 (11:35):
Everything you read in the Septuagint?
S2 (11:39):
No. Every every translation of scripture that I seem to get,
whether it's on the internet. Okay. My Bibles at home.
S1 (11:46):
Okay, let me explain. For those of you playing at home,
let's let's see if I can explain this in second
Samuel 23. Uh, it does indeed read in the Hebrew
Bible as, uh, on high, and I'll read you the verse.
It says the oracle of David, son of Jesse, the
(12:06):
oracle of the man raised up on high. There's what
it says. Uh, the one anointed by the God of Jacob.
And my version says the favorite singer of Israel. But
it should be the delightful, the delight of the songs
of Israel. That's a literal translation. And now the problem is,
(12:28):
is that the word in Hebrew that's translated on high
is the word al. And in English we would say,
but in Hebrew There's a vowel that tells us it
means on high. Now, in Hebrew, the vowels weren't added
(12:49):
into the Hebrew Bible until somewhere by the 10th century A.D..
Most people don't realize that that the vowels, the little
lines and dots and stuff that are vowels in Hebrew,
they weren't in the original Hebrew text of the Bible.
They were put in by rabbinic experts at texting at
(13:12):
the text of Scripture. They were called the masoretes. They
put them in between the eighth and 10th century A.D.
that's how old they were. And the Septuagint actually reads
it not on high, but rather with the. They translated
the word epi. All they, they read it with a
(13:32):
different vowel, not a different letter. They understood a different
vowel to be under it. And they translated it with
the Greek word epi, which means concerning. So the earliest
version we have of that, that passage sees it as concerning.
And if we read it this way, it says the
oracle of David, the son of Jesse, the declaration or
(13:55):
oracle of the man raised up concerning the Anointed one,
or the Messiah of the God of Jacob, the delightful,
one of the songs of Israel. David says that he
is writing about his favorite subject, the delightful one of
the songs of Israel, who concerning the Messiah, the anointed
(14:16):
one of the God of Jacob. Now, that may seem
a little complicated, but that's, uh, in the Moody Handbook
of Messianic Prophecy. And if you read it, Dan, you
can see the explanation for it. And the best way
to see it is just read a Greek Septuagint Greek
translation from the second century BC, and you'll see that
the word there is epi concerning. Perfect. Okay.
S2 (14:40):
That's awesome. Thank you so much for your teaching, Michael.
We love you.
S1 (14:44):
Yeah. Thank you, I appreciate it. Thanks for calling, Dan. Well, we, uh,
we're going to take a break. But before we do,
I want to mention our current resource. Uh, it is
a terrific tool. I'm so grateful. And it's the very
last week that we're offering it. So it's important for
you if you're interested in this. Our resource is the
(15:05):
Ultimate Bible Dictionary by Holman. Holman publishers produced the BNA,
produced the my favorite Bible translation. Uh, the Holman CSB.
And they have produced this one little Bible dictionary. So
if you don't know what a place is or, uh,
an event that's mentioned in the Bible or a person,
you can look it up in this little bitty book
(15:26):
and it'll give you a real quick explanation of what
that is, and you'll find that really helpful. So don't
miss out. All you need to do is call 447122
or go to Open Line Radio and make sure when
you give a gift of any size, you ask for
the ultimate Bible dictionary. We'll be right back with more
(15:49):
right here on Open Line with Michael Ray Dolnick. And
we're back. My name is Michael Ray. This program is
called Open Line. You can call with your questions about
(16:12):
the Bible. (877) 548-3675. If you have a question about the
spiritual life, a question about some truth about God, I'll
do my best to answer it. We're going to talk
with Michael in North Carolina right now listening on 104.3.
Welcome to Open Line. Michael. How can I help you today?
S2 (16:33):
Uh.
S3 (16:34):
Yes. Michael, can you hear me? Okay.
S1 (16:36):
Yeah. You sound great.
S3 (16:38):
Okay, good. You do too. Um, I have a question. Um,
I was studying Psalms 132, and, uh, I was looking
at the promise that God made David that his descendants
would always sit on the throne. Um, and, uh, I
was wondering. And it pointed. Also, I was looking at
theological theme of that, that particular chapter. And, um, I
(17:02):
see that God's covenant with David, um, I think is
pretty sure even through the millennial reign. I was just
wondering when Christ sits on the throne during the millennial
reign and David's helped Co-ruling will he have a throne
to sit on also? Or am I? I don't think
the Bible say, what do.
S1 (17:20):
You think? Bible doesn't say. But here's what I would say.
You're thinking of verses like in Ezekiel and, uh, places
like that where it speaks Hosea. Here's a verse that
I'm thinking of. Uh, it says that Israel is Hosea
three four. The Israelites must live many days without king
(17:42):
or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, and without ephod
or household idols. And that's pretty much the period of
time now that we're in. For many days, Israel hasn't
had a king. Uh, no sacrificial system, no temple, no
priesthood operating, uh, and no idolatry. But then it says afterward.
(18:05):
And that will be, I think, at the end of
the tribulation period, the people of Israel will return and
seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and
they will come with or to the Lord and to
his goodness in the last days. And so that's the
verse you're thinking of, where it says, David, I don't
believe it means literal. David. I don't think David will
(18:27):
be co-regent in the Millennial Kingdom. I think that this
is saying David, their king, meaning the Son of David,
the greater David, the one that was promised to have
an eternal house, kingdom and throne. The descendant of David,
and is just using David as the name of the father.
The the starter of that household, that dynasty. But it's
(18:49):
not referring to David. It's talking about the Lord Jesus,
the Son of David.
S3 (18:52):
And they did refer Jesus being the Son of David, right?
That's right. So that's that sort of makes sense. But
that was just I hope it wasn't a stupid question.
It just.
S1 (19:01):
No, no, it's a great question. Because why does it
say David. Well, that's they're using David as the, the king.
And by the way, every time I think this is
a cool thing, I was just talking with a couple
of dear friends, uh, in Israel and recently two Jewish people,
instead of waiting for the end of days, sought David,
their king, and the Lord their God. And they came
(19:23):
with all to the Lord just recently. You don't. Only
the nation will do that at the end of days,
but individually, Jewish people do that all the time. So.
But when in saying seeking David their king, it's talking
about the Son of David, the greater son of David. Okay.
S3 (19:40):
Yeah. And one of the things I found was this
is while David is expected to have a prominent role,
the Scripture doesn't explicitly state that he will share a
throne with Jesus. So that makes very much sense, doesn't it?
S1 (19:52):
Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, I don't know what kind
of role he'll have. Uh, the reason people think he'll
have a prominent role are those verses where it talks
about David ruling over the people, but it's not. Again,
in every one of those passages, I believe it's not
talking about literal, David. It's talking about the literal Son
of David, the Messiah. So okay.
S3 (20:11):
Thank you. Thanks, Michael. Appreciate it. I've just heard you
a couple times on the radio, and I love the program.
Thank you very much.
S1 (20:16):
Thank you so much, I appreciate it. Uh, we're going
to talk with Tony, uh, in Ketchikan, Alaska, on Abc-Tv.
I guess in Alaska, they have five letters in their stations.
Welcome to open line, Tony. How can I help you today?
S4 (20:31):
Yes. Good morning doctor. I have a question and a comment,
if you please. And I just to say that I
finally became a kitchen table coffee partner, and I.
S1 (20:42):
Oh. Thank you.
S4 (20:44):
Oh, no. Thank you sir. And they enjoy the the
gift that they send me. It's a beautiful cup of coffee. Uh.
S1 (20:51):
Coffee cup. Great. I'm glad. You know, we drink a
lot of coffee or tea. I love for tea. Also, uh,
here on Open Line. Hey, uh, how can I help you?
What's your question?
S4 (21:02):
I the question is regarding revelation 13 one three, verse
16 and the 14th verse 11, and the best way
I can describe it to you, my comment or my
question is that I imagine the Cowboys, when they round
up the cows and to brand them so the cows
trying to run away, and the cowboys, they circle the
(21:25):
cow and then they rope and and they put them
on the ground by force and then they brand it.
So when at the day of judgment, how God is
going to judge me or anyone with a mark of
the beast because we got the mark by sheer force.
Are we going to be God to send us into hell?
Or how is it going to judge us?
S1 (21:45):
Well, first of all, let me just say I don't
believe that you or I will be there. I think
the the rapture, the Lord will descend with a shout
and snatch us away. The body of the Messiah. Away
before this ever happens. And so I don't think it's
possible for you to receive the mark of the beast
that's right up front. But even though there will be
(22:08):
and there will be believers in the tribulation period, if
you read revelation 1316, it says that he requires everyone,
small and great, rich and poor, free and slave to
be given a mark on his right hand or on
his forehead so that no one can buy or sell
unless he has the mark, the beast's name, or the
number of his name. So it's something that he requires
(22:29):
for economic participation. It's not something that they will round
people up and do to them. There will always be
an element of choice. Uh, sort of. I yeah, I
hate to say this, but there are some governments that
made the, uh, Covid vaccine required. Uh, and it's not
(22:51):
like they rounded people up and gave it to them
against their will, but they were basically said, you can't
enter this arena. You can't, uh, go to this country,
you can't do anything unless you are vaccinated. So it
was a requirement and people could choose, say, well, I'm
not going to do that. I'm not going to do that.
That's how it turned out. Uh, so I think that, uh, I,
(23:16):
I wouldn't, uh, be concerned about it because it's always
going to be a matter of choice. And also it's
not going to be an issue for you because you
and I will be taken away First. Okay, Tony.
S4 (23:28):
I have a comment for you and I believe you
will ask this. You will like this one. What it
would be. Because with so many questions in the Bible,
what it would be for the open line to be
available 27 7/24 every day available.
S1 (23:45):
I don't know. We'd have to get a lot more
people to answer the questions, because I'm not up to that,
but it's available all the time via podcast. You can
go back and listen. You can listen on Moody. The
Moody Radio app, it's available there. In fact, you can
you can go online. I think it's about a year
and a half of program so you can catch up
right there. Tony. Appreciate the interest and I really appreciate
(24:07):
you being a kitchen table partner. Uh, in fact, let
me take a minute, folks, and tell you about what
it means that Tony said he's become a kitchen table partner.
Kitchen table partner is someone who is has committed to
give monthly. So Open line can be on the air weekly.
And just as I mentioned in the previous segment, that
(24:28):
we have a a opportunity for people to give a
gift of any size. And it's, you know, it's a
great time to do that because it's the end of
the fiscal year, and it really helps us out at
this time to to meet our budget. If that's something
you'd like to do, we'll send you that book, the
Ultimate Bible Dictionary. But other people sign up to give
(24:49):
monthly and they become kitchen table partners. And what I
do for them is I provide a digital Bible study
every other week. Trish and I produce it, and right
now we're going through the book of Ephesians, and we
go through and we study something about 5 or 10
minutes that you can click on in your email. And
of course get a nice mug apparently is what Tony
(25:11):
was telling us. But appreciate all of you who decide
to become Kitchen Table partners. If you'd like to become
a kitchen table partner, all you have to do is
call 447122 or go to open line radio.org. Well, some
of you mail in questions. The way you do that
(25:33):
is go to Open Line radio.org and click on the
link that says Ask Michael a question. If you do that, well, uh,
you'll get a place where you can put your question
and it gets put in the mailbag. Trish is going
to be in here in a minute. And we're going
to talk about the questions you've mailed in. It's time
for the Febc mailbag. So stay with us. We'll be
right back here online. Welcome back to Open Line. I'm
(26:06):
Michael Rey Dominik. And so glad that Tricia McMillan is
joining me right now with the Far Eastern Broadcasting Company mailbag.
Grateful for Far Eastern Broadcasting Company for partnering with us
and bringing you the mailbag every week. Febc does wonderful
ministry among people using media and personal outreach. It's a
(26:26):
really terrific organization. I hope you'll check out their website. Org.
It also has a link there to their podcast called
Until All Have Heard featuring Ed Cannon. Check that out.
I think you'll really like it. Hey, Tricia, how are
you doing?
S5 (26:41):
I'm doing well, thanks.
S1 (26:43):
Yeah. I'm so glad to see you. It's really fun.
And I see the mailbags kind of growing. And so
I think we should try to answer as many as
we can.
S5 (26:51):
Hopefully we we try every week. Yeah. Well, our first
question is actually a combo. We had Amy in Minnesota
who listens to KFC and Bradley in Pennsylvania, who are
both asking about how to respond to people being killed
in Gaza. Um, okay. So I'm going to read.
S1 (27:16):
Amy ask.
S5 (27:16):
Amy asked how do we respond to the innocent victims
in Gaza?
S1 (27:20):
Okay.
S5 (27:21):
Bradley's include some numbers. And so I'm going to read
these numbers.
S1 (27:25):
Um, start with this whole question.
S5 (27:27):
Okay. I will read this whole question. How is it
not a genocide in Gaza when 54,000 Palestinians have been
killed and counting 70%? Some say 90% of all buildings
in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged. £140 million of
bombs have been dropped on Gaza, which is more than London,
Hamburg and Dresden combined during World War two, and 2
(27:48):
million people are facing famine. It seems that every day
reports of IDF forces opening fire on unarmed civilians come.
How is this not genocide? And why should we support
the secular state of Israel and assume that they have
good intentions?
S1 (28:04):
Wow. Well, that's not just wanting to know how to respond,
that is, that deserves some response directly to it. I've
been very open about saying this is not a genocide.
That's mostly propaganda that you hear. But let's start with
Amy's question. How do we respond to the innocent victims
of Gaza? I think we should respond with great concern
(28:25):
and great care. I think that that's imperative. I think
Israel has done their best with the innocent victims, the
civilians in Gaza. Here are some of the things that
they have done. They've created pathways for civilians to go
to safe areas. They've sent leaflets directing people with maps
(28:50):
about where to go. They've sent text messages, phone calls,
directing people. Every time Israel has gone into a given area,
they have moved people into safe zones. Now, what I
think is a tragedy here is that typically in war situations,
(29:12):
the neighboring countries will open up the border and allow
refugees to go there temporarily while the war is going on.
Egypt has absolutely refused to do that. So that would
be the most natural thing to set up refugee places,
refugee camps in the Sinai, just south of Gaza. And
(29:34):
there all the aid workers could go. It wouldn't be
an issue. Sadly, Egypt absolutely refuses to do that. They
don't trust bringing any Gazan civilians into Egyptian sovereignty, but
that would be the normal way. That's what happened in
the civil war in Syria. That's what happened in every
kind of war situation. The civilians are allowed to leave,
(29:57):
but the the Egyptians won't allow that. But Israel has
done their best to try to get Gazans out of
the line of fire. I would say when there are
civilian casualties, I wouldn't blame Israel. I would blame Hamas.
That deliberately embeds among civilians and does everything they can
(30:20):
to keep civilians from leaving, to go to safe zones,
sometimes even firing upon them if they try to leave,
to go to the safe zones. So that's what I
would say about the civilian population of Gaza. Let's take
Brad's question. How is it not a genocide when 54,000
Palestinians have been killed and counting? Well, that's the first question.
(30:44):
54,000 is the figure that we have received from the
Gaza Health Health Organization. Now, what's crazy about that is
that's Hamas. So the figure 54,000 is coming from Hamas.
And you can't trust the numbers of a terrorist organization.
(31:06):
But let's presume they're accurate. Israel has admitted to us
That they have killed 24,000 Hamas combatants. That's the result
of this war. So 24,000 are actual not civilians, not
(31:27):
women and children, but actual combatants. So that reduces the
number from 54,000 to 30,000. A recent study came out
and found that 8000 natural people who died of natural
causes also were included in that 54,000 number figure. So
(31:49):
that reduces it from 54 to 20 24,000 leaves 30,
then take 8000. That's actually 22,000 that are civilian casualties
if that. The other thing, studies have been done showing
that the ratio there of 22,000 civilian casualties is probably unlikely,
(32:11):
but it is. Let's just say what it is. That's
what it is 22,000. So there's about a 1 to
1 ratio of collateral damage. I hate that expression because
those are people. But a 1 to 1 ratio of
civilian death to, uh, to combatant deaths in close quarters
(32:32):
urban combat. That is the lowest ratio in any urban
setting in history. Imagine that the lowest ratio of of
civilian collateral damage in a close quarter urban combat setting.
And the reason for it is because Hamas embeds among civilians.
(32:54):
They do. They consider every civilian casualty a victory for
Hamas because it hurts Israel's reputation. And so that's why
they want to have civilian casualties. They celebrate, they glorify
civilian casualties, and that's why they don't want people to
leave those areas where Hamas embeds, which is in mosques, schools, hospitals,
places like that. John Spencer, who teaches at West Point
(33:20):
in the area of close quarters urban Combat, has said
that this is the lowest combatant civilian to combatant ratio
in any war in history. In the United States, when
we fought in Fallujah and places like that are in Afghanistan,
in in Iraq, are civilian when we fought ISIS are
(33:42):
civilian to combatant ratio was six civilians to every one
combatant in the United States. So that's quite a different number.
But mostly I would say Hamas responsible. Hamas started the war.
They murdered 1200 Israelis and also foreigners. They took 251
(34:03):
people hostage. They broke a ceasefire that was existing. They
embed among the civilian population. They tunnel under homes, hospitals, schools.
They consider every civilian death a success that helps them.
So let's recognize that Hamas is responsible. Now, it's not
(34:24):
a it's not. Anyone looking at those numbers objectively would
know this is not a genocide. If Israel intended to
have a genocide, then think about it. There would be
no one left in Gaza. They Israel certainly has the
firepower to carpet bomb, which they haven't done. Now, Bradley
has looked at these numbers here. £140 million of bombs
(34:48):
have been dropped on Gaza more than London, Hamburg, Dresden.
I don't think those numbers are accurate, according to John Spencer.
And so I would say they're not accurate. However, that
I would say this the difference between Dresden, Hamburg and
London Is there were no tunnel system underground to. Protect
(35:16):
the terrorists. Hamas has built what they call the subway.
It's miles and miles of of underground tunnels, not used
to protect the people, but to protect the terrorists and
to hide the hostages. And that is why there needs
to be heavy bombardment to take care of those tunnels.
(35:36):
Although Israel does quite a bit in going through the
tunnels with dogs, with soldiers to try to avoid civilian
deaths and destruction. Now it says here in this question,
I'm looking at it carefully. Uh, 2 million people are
facing famine. They are absolutely not facing famine. That's untrue.
(35:58):
Israel has allowed much of the foods to come into Gaza,
much more than Hamas even wanted. Hamas steals it and
then puts it into their warehouses, where they charge exorbitant
prices to civilians and then use that to fund their terrorism. So, no,
(36:24):
it's interesting when when the United States and Israel formed
this group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the CHF, and they
started giving food away to people. Well, tragically, uh, Hamas
began to fire upon civilians who were trying to get
food for bad people to get food from there. And
(36:45):
then they began to open their warehouses and start giving
food because they were holding food back from the Gaza
civilian population. Uh, so there isn't a famine. It's just
not true. Uh, it's it's again propaganda. Um, and so
when I look at this, it says they're facing famine.
(37:08):
No they're not. And then it says they opened fire
on unarmed civilians. That's a report that Hamas gave that
Israel was doing it, when in fact Hamas is firing
on civilians trying to get aid. And the newspapers that
printed those stories about Israel firing on civilians, unarmed civilians
going for food, had to retract those stories because they
(37:31):
just weren't true. Here's my point. We, as followers of Jesus,
need to remember that no lie is of the truth.
And there are a lot of lies being presented here, uh,
to people. And I'm not saying, Bradley, you're making the
lies up, but we have to be discerning. We have
to understand what the truth is. The truth is available
(37:51):
out there, and we should check it. Uh, I don't
think that there's any question that the truth is out there.
That's why people like John Spencer, who is a professor
at West Point and President Biden before. And even now,
our government says there is no genocide happening in Gaza.
(38:12):
We need to know that the truth is available. Don't
make yourself gullible and believe every lie that's being promoted,
every bit of propaganda by Hamas. That's what I would say.
S5 (38:23):
Where how do we know that the the the source
is true? Or what are the true sources that we
could check to find the accurate info?
S1 (38:33):
Well, I would say that we have to be really careful.
I think there like there's an organization called Camera Org
and that checks the media constantly for the lies. Here's
what happens Hamas presents lies. The New York Times, The
Washington Post, various newspapers or news organizations will then print it,
(38:57):
and then camera will correct them, and then they will, uh,
do it. So camera org. Honestreporting. Com uh, also the
Times of Israel. Com. Those would be helpful things. I
hope this helped a little bit. Tricia. Uh, we'll be
back with more questions on the phone in just a moment.
Stay with us. That was Tricia McMillan. I'm Michael Radnich.
(39:34):
Welcome back to Open Line. So glad to be with you. Uh, and, uh,
I did want to mention, you know, we're talking about
the situation in, in Israel and the, the war with Gaza.
The nation is really struggling, even though there was a
(39:54):
successful campaign in taking out the nuclear weapons, the nuclear,
the nuclear program of Iran. It seems like it's a
tough time in Israel and as a result. People wonder
is what does the future hold for Israel? Well Chosen
(40:16):
People Ministries, one of our ministry partners, is offering a
free booklet. It's called Israel's Glorious Future. It's a reminder
of God's faithfulness about his covenant promises that he's made
to the Jewish people, and how he will fulfill them.
It's a great book that helps you understand Israel's glorious future.
If you'd like a free copy. Just go to our website.
(40:39):
That's Openline Radio.com. Click on the link that says Free
Gift from Chosen People Ministries, and that will take you
to a page where you can sign up for your
very own copy of Israel's Glorious Future. Also, I did
want to mention something that today is the last. Well,
this is the last week I am going to be
(41:01):
on a winter cruise in December on a tall ship
in the Caribbean, and I'm going to be teaching the
Bible every day. Uh, we're going to study the Book
of Daniel for this week long cruise. If you're thinking, wow,
in the winter time, I'd like to get out of town,
study the word worship, uh, and and also enjoy the
(41:24):
the warm weather on this cruise. Uh, it's something that
I think you'll really enjoy being in the Caribbean if, uh,
if you'd like to join us for that, today is
the last day. To sign up, just go to Openline
radio.org and scroll down to where you see the link
to my personal website, to my personal website, and you
click on that, and then you'll be able to find
(41:45):
out more about the Bible Conference on a cruise, uh,
coming up in December, uh, we're going to talk to
James in Auburndale, Florida, listening to, uh, welcome to Open Line. James,
how can I help you today?
S6 (42:00):
Yes. Just a quick question. If you could be able
to answer it for me, I would appreciate it. Um,
if you love someone on this earth all these years
and I'm talking about a husband and wife relationship, and
they loved each other at the end of their love,
the relationship more than they did when at the beginning
of their marriage. And you know that both of them
were saved. And then when you get to heaven, I
always thought that the Lord would say, if you loved
(42:22):
each other this way you can be able to stay
with each other for all eternity. Well, something just saddened
me because I just opened up the Bible last night
and I was reading Isaiah chapter 65, verse 17, where
it says, for behold, I create new heavens and a
new earth, and the former shall not be remembered or
come to mind. I am saddened. Can you be able
(42:45):
to please tell me, is there anywhere in Scripture where
it says what I was just talking about, where you
would be able to stay together for all eternity with
each other, and I'll hang up and listen to your response.
S1 (42:56):
No, no, don't hang up. Don't hang up. Can you
hear me? Okay.
S6 (43:00):
I'm still here.
S1 (43:01):
Okay, good. Don't hang up. Well, I just want to
be really clear that it talks about that every tear
will be wiped away. Uh, and I believe when it
says that past events will not be remembered or come
to mind, it's sort of a figure of speech saying
that the pain of the past will no longer be remembered.
S6 (43:24):
That when it reads exactly like I'm saying, I'm reading
verbatim where it says it will not even come to mind.
That kind of hurt.
S7 (43:32):
Uh, well.
S1 (43:33):
Uh, listen to what I'm saying, James. Okay. Uh, it's
not saying that you won't remember anything, because then you
won't remember. Jesus. Okay, uh, what it's saying is it's
referring to the painful events of our past, and I
don't even. I'm not even sure that, uh, it means
that we won't know the bad things that happened. It
(43:55):
just means that the pain of the past will not
be remembered. The the. There'll be a loss of the pain.
And now what I'm saying to you is this is
a figure of speech for explaining how it is that
we will no longer have tears or sorrow in the
new creation. That's what it's talking about. It's not saying
(44:18):
you won't remember your spouse. Okay.
S6 (44:21):
The reason why I'm saying is I'm still single, never
been married, no children floating around out there. I'm one
of those rare breeds. I always felt that.
S7 (44:27):
Okay. James. James.
S6 (44:29):
I'm trying to say is, when I'm reading this in scripture,
I saw my parents how they loved each other and
things like that.
S7 (44:34):
James. James, I.
S1 (44:36):
I heard what you're saying. Uh, do you hear what
I'm saying?
S6 (44:40):
Yes, sir. And also, I was wanting to say this.
When we do get to heaven, our love for God
is going to be more than our wives or even ourselves.
Because that's what we're supposed to do. Our love is
going to be so greater. Yes. We supposed.
S7 (44:52):
Okay. Okay. James.
S1 (44:55):
James, are you looking forward to having the pain of
this life comforted and removed?
S6 (45:04):
Yes.
S7 (45:07):
Well, that's what.
S1 (45:07):
That verse is promising. Okay, uh, don't make it say
more than it's meant to say. Um, there there are many,
many things that we will remember. Uh, we'll remember that
Jesus died for us and rose again. And that he's
our Redeemer and that we will follow him forever. We'll
remember that. We'll remember the pain, the the, the redemption
(45:32):
from the past, from that pain will remember all those
ones that he gave us and we loved. And and
so you don't have to stress out about not remembering things.
It's not like God has a neuralyzer and we forget
our past. Uh, okay. Uh, Uh, that he'll wave in
(45:54):
front of our heads and life will just begin at
the new heavens and new earth. It'll. It'll will last forever.
With great memories of the great things that God has done.
Thanks for your call. Really appreciate it. Well, that's the
first hour of Open Line. I can't believe how quickly
that went. Uh, keep listening to the second hour on
most of these stations. And if you can't catch the
(46:16):
second hour, you can always go to our website. You
can go to the Moody Radio app, or you can
go get the podcast, check out our website during the break. Uh,
it'll keep you up to date on everything you're looking for.
You can see the things that, uh, that are there
about being a kitchen table partner or, uh, or getting
our current resource. The Bible study across America will continue
(46:39):
in the second hour, so stay with us. Open line
with Doctor Michael Ray Dolnick is a production of Moody Radio,
a ministry of Moody Bible Institute. Be right back.
When life gets tough, it's hard to receive any encouragement.
How can how can we keep hearing from God even
in tough times? Stay with me. We'll talk about that
in just a moment. Hello, friends. Welcome to Open Line,
Moody Radio's Bible study across America. My name is Michael Wright.
I'm the academic dean and professor of Jewish studies and
(00:31):
Bible at Moody Bible Institute. I'm so grateful to be
joining you around the radio kitchen table. And we're talking
about your questions about the Bible, God, and the spiritual life.
If you have a question and you'd like to call
the phone number, here is (877) 548-3675. Let me give you
(00:52):
that number once again. You can write it down 83675. Also,
I'd encourage you if you've had a question and you
wanted to get through but weren't able to. This is
the best time to call right here at the beginning
of the hour. Call (877) 548-3675. Best time to get through.
(01:17):
Of course. Our senior producer is Tricia McMillan. Ably assisted
today by Lisa and Tahira. Omar Mendoza is our tech guy.
Today Rihanna is answering the phones. Thanks for all that
this team does to make Open Line an effective program.
Thank you so much for all that. Again the phone
number (877) 548-3675. Time to get yourself a cup of coffee.
(01:43):
I've got mine right here. Open your Bible. We're about
to study the scriptures together. I have a friend who
recently lost a job. It was sudden. It was unexpected.
And there is a great deal of anger and bitterness
(02:03):
and hurt that came about as a result. And it
wasn't just anger at his former employer, but angry at God.
How could God allow this to happen? And as a result?
There is. It almost became a bitterness in his heart
(02:26):
against the Lord. Sometimes God wants to give us encouragement.
He wants us to be lifted up. Even in tough times.
It doesn't matter if it's loss of a job. It
doesn't matter if it's maybe even a difficulty with a
relationship or an illness or whatever it is that you
(02:48):
feel or I feel might be oppressing us. How do
we get encouragement from God? I was thinking about this
the other day. I've been reading through the book of Exodus,
and I came to Exodus chapter six, and it's where
God promises because he heard the outcry of of the
Israelite slaves in Egypt, and he promises that he's going
(03:11):
to send Moses, and he wants Moses to encourage the
people because they were slaves and they were oppressed, and
they were facing such difficulties. And God said through Moses,
tell the Israelites, I am the Lord, and I will
deliver you from the forced labor labor of the Egyptians.
(03:32):
This is Exodus six six and following and free you
from slavery to them I will redeem you with an
outstretched arm and great acts of judgment. I will take
you as my people, and I will be your God.
You will know that I am the Lord your God,
who delivered you from the forced labor of the Egyptians.
I will bring you into the land that I swore
(03:53):
to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will
give it to you as a possession. I am the Lord.
God gave a great encouraging message to a hard pressed
people facing a tough time. And I want to focus
on verse nine. This is what struck me. Moses told
(04:15):
this to the Israelites, but they did not listen to
him because of their broken spirit and hard labor. That
just shook me. God had the most encouraging, uplifting, most
positive message for them, and they couldn't listen because of
(04:37):
their broken spirit, because of their suffering, because of how
tough times were. I was really struck by how true
that is in our lives. How do we make ourselves
open to God Even when we feel broken down in situation,
how do we stay open to the encouragement of the
(05:00):
Lord when we're broken? How do we avoid the mistake
that the Israelites made when they couldn't hear the encouraging
message from Moses? Well, I thought about that a good bit,
and I thought back to a time in my life
it was about 25 or 30 years ago. I went
through the toughest time in ministry that I'd ever faced,
and I was so unbelievably discouraged. And I wanted to
(05:27):
hear from the Lord, and I didn't feel like I
was receiving any encouragement. And so I thought back, how
did I keep it together in that tough time when
I wanted to throw it all out? How did I
stay open even when I felt broken? And as I
contemplated that experience from all those years ago, I came
(05:48):
up with three principles I think we should all live
by when we're going through tough times. And here they are.
First of all, focus on the Word of God that
we can't stop being in the word. When life gets tough,
we have to stay in the Word of God. It's
(06:09):
essential that we read the word. Study the word, hear
the word. Uh, we need to receive the Word of
God because it reveals God's character, what he's really like.
It reminds us of the truths of of God's Word
and the that God is going to work all things
together for good. We need to be in the word
(06:29):
when we're going through tough times. Instead of saying, I
am so fed up with what God has to say,
I'm going to. Throw this out. And so, uh, John 1717,
the Lord Jesus said, sanctify them in the truth of
his disciples, of his followers. Your word is truth. Whenever
(06:54):
life is going hard, tough or struggling, we have to
be reminded constantly of what is actually true. So we
have to stay in the Word of God. Secondly, we
have to stay faithful no matter what. Sometimes we use
hard times as an excuse to say, oh, I've been
trying to be so faithful and obedient to the Lord,
(07:18):
but you know, I'm being persecuted. I'm facing tough times. What?
He's abandoned me. I'll just abandon him. No. It's better
for us to be obedient in tough times rather than
use it as an excuse for disobedience. I was taken
by the concept in the book of First Peter. In
(07:43):
First Peter it says that what credit is there if
you sin and are punished and you endure it if
you deserve it. That's he says, if you deserve it,
what good is it if you do? If you do that,
it is better, according to first Peter, to be obedient
(08:06):
to God. Uh, it's better to suffer for doing good
if that should be God's will than for doing evil.
First Peter 317. It's so important that we stay faithful
and obedient even when life is hard. Instead of saying, yeah, well,
life is hard and that's that's natural for when we're
(08:28):
being disobedient to God. No, we are going to stay
faithful that that is what brings honor to God, that
we're going to stay faithful no matter how hard life gets.
And so first, if we want to be open when
life is going tough, well, first of all, we need
to stay in the word. Secondly, we have to stay obedient, obedience.
Stay faithful. And the third lesson I learned was we
(08:51):
need to receive the encouragement of God's faithful people. In
Hebrews 1025, it tells us not to forsake the assembling
of ourselves together, as is the habit of some. Because
they were facing persecution, they were facing tough times, and
they were abandoning their community. He says. It's important that
we not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is
(09:15):
the habit of some, that we might receive encouragement and encouragement.
That's the point of Hebrews 1025. It's when we're really
broken down and struggling. We need to be in community
because it is God's people that will bring us hope
and encouragement and strengthening. We need to be in our community.
(09:39):
I look back at that tough time in my life
and it was my congregation, my community of of faithful
followers of Jesus who knew the tough time I was
going through and kept bringing me encouragement. It was my pastor.
It was my friends. It was what I needed to
hear because they were the ones that God was using
(10:00):
to bring me encouragement. So how do we stay open
when we're broken? Most important, we have to be in
the word. Stay faithful and stay in our community. Be
faithful in our community. And that's what God will bring
us through the tough time and finally lift us up.
(10:32):
I hope that's an encouragement to you. If you're going
through a tough time. We're going to go to the
phones right now. We're going to talk to Dan in Tipton, Indiana,
listening on WGN. Welcome to Open Line, Dan. How can
I help you today?
S2 (10:45):
Hi. Good morning Michael. We're doing a summer series on
the canonical structure of the Psalter, using your team's The
Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy, which we just love. And
speaking of one two Samuel, chapter 23, verse one and two.
David's favorite thing was to write about Messiah. We are
(11:07):
told in the book. And yet there was a little
change to a word that went, rendered the word concerning it,
rendered it on high. And that's just a fascinating thing.
And I don't know if you want to talk about that,
but what I'm curious about is, is there a way
for me to find the original Septuagint version or whatnot
(11:28):
that shows it as concerning, as opposed because everything that
I read shows it as on high?
S1 (11:35):
Everything you read in the Septuagint?
S2 (11:39):
No. Every every translation of scripture that I seem to get,
whether it's on the internet. Okay. My Bibles at home.
S1 (11:46):
Okay, let me explain. For those of you playing at home,
let's let's see if I can explain this in second
Samuel 23. Uh, it does indeed read in the Hebrew
Bible as, uh, on high, and I'll read you the verse.
It says the oracle of David, son of Jesse, the
(12:06):
oracle of the man raised up on high. There's what
it says. Uh, the one anointed by the God of Jacob.
And my version says the favorite singer of Israel. But
it should be the delightful, the delight of the songs
of Israel. That's a literal translation. And now the problem is,
(12:28):
is that the word in Hebrew that's translated on high
is the word al. And in English we would say,
but in Hebrew There's a vowel that tells us it
means on high. Now, in Hebrew, the vowels weren't added
(12:49):
into the Hebrew Bible until somewhere by the 10th century A.D..
Most people don't realize that that the vowels, the little
lines and dots and stuff that are vowels in Hebrew,
they weren't in the original Hebrew text of the Bible.
They were put in by rabbinic experts at texting at
(13:12):
the text of Scripture. They were called the masoretes. They
put them in between the eighth and 10th century A.D.
that's how old they were. And the Septuagint actually reads
it not on high, but rather with the. They translated
the word epi. All they, they read it with a
(13:32):
different vowel, not a different letter. They understood a different
vowel to be under it. And they translated it with
the Greek word epi, which means concerning. So the earliest
version we have of that, that passage sees it as concerning.
And if we read it this way, it says the
oracle of David, the son of Jesse, the declaration or
(13:55):
oracle of the man raised up concerning the Anointed one,
or the Messiah of the God of Jacob, the delightful,
one of the songs of Israel. David says that he
is writing about his favorite subject, the delightful one of
the songs of Israel, who concerning the Messiah, the anointed
(14:16):
one of the God of Jacob. Now, that may seem
a little complicated, but that's, uh, in the Moody Handbook
of Messianic Prophecy. And if you read it, Dan, you
can see the explanation for it. And the best way
to see it is just read a Greek Septuagint Greek
translation from the second century BC, and you'll see that
the word there is epi concerning. Perfect. Okay.
S2 (14:40):
That's awesome. Thank you so much for your teaching, Michael.
We love you.
S1 (14:44):
Yeah. Thank you, I appreciate it. Thanks for calling, Dan. Well, we, uh,
we're going to take a break. But before we do,
I want to mention our current resource. Uh, it is
a terrific tool. I'm so grateful. And it's the very
last week that we're offering it. So it's important for
you if you're interested in this. Our resource is the
(15:05):
Ultimate Bible Dictionary by Holman. Holman publishers produced the BNA,
produced the my favorite Bible translation. Uh, the Holman CSB.
And they have produced this one little Bible dictionary. So
if you don't know what a place is or, uh,
an event that's mentioned in the Bible or a person,
you can look it up in this little bitty book
(15:26):
and it'll give you a real quick explanation of what
that is, and you'll find that really helpful. So don't
miss out. All you need to do is call 447122
or go to Open Line Radio and make sure when
you give a gift of any size, you ask for
the ultimate Bible dictionary. We'll be right back with more
(15:49):
right here on Open Line with Michael Ray Dolnick. And
we're back. My name is Michael Ray. This program is
called Open Line. You can call with your questions about
(16:12):
the Bible. (877) 548-3675. If you have a question about the
spiritual life, a question about some truth about God, I'll
do my best to answer it. We're going to talk
with Michael in North Carolina right now listening on 104.3.
Welcome to Open Line. Michael. How can I help you today?
S2 (16:33):
Uh.
S3 (16:34):
Yes. Michael, can you hear me? Okay.
S1 (16:36):
Yeah. You sound great.
S3 (16:38):
Okay, good. You do too. Um, I have a question. Um,
I was studying Psalms 132, and, uh, I was looking
at the promise that God made David that his descendants
would always sit on the throne. Um, and, uh, I
was wondering. And it pointed. Also, I was looking at
theological theme of that, that particular chapter. And, um, I
(17:02):
see that God's covenant with David, um, I think is
pretty sure even through the millennial reign. I was just
wondering when Christ sits on the throne during the millennial
reign and David's helped Co-ruling will he have a throne
to sit on also? Or am I? I don't think
the Bible say, what do.
S1 (17:20):
You think? Bible doesn't say. But here's what I would say.
You're thinking of verses like in Ezekiel and, uh, places
like that where it speaks Hosea. Here's a verse that
I'm thinking of. Uh, it says that Israel is Hosea
three four. The Israelites must live many days without king
(17:42):
or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, and without ephod
or household idols. And that's pretty much the period of
time now that we're in. For many days, Israel hasn't
had a king. Uh, no sacrificial system, no temple, no
priesthood operating, uh, and no idolatry. But then it says afterward.
(18:05):
And that will be, I think, at the end of
the tribulation period, the people of Israel will return and
seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and
they will come with or to the Lord and to
his goodness in the last days. And so that's the
verse you're thinking of, where it says, David, I don't
believe it means literal. David. I don't think David will
(18:27):
be co-regent in the Millennial Kingdom. I think that this
is saying David, their king, meaning the Son of David,
the greater David, the one that was promised to have
an eternal house, kingdom and throne. The descendant of David,
and is just using David as the name of the father.
The the starter of that household, that dynasty. But it's
(18:49):
not referring to David. It's talking about the Lord Jesus,
the Son of David.
S3 (18:52):
And they did refer Jesus being the Son of David, right?
That's right. So that's that sort of makes sense. But
that was just I hope it wasn't a stupid question.
It just.
S1 (19:01):
No, no, it's a great question. Because why does it
say David. Well, that's they're using David as the, the king.
And by the way, every time I think this is
a cool thing, I was just talking with a couple
of dear friends, uh, in Israel and recently two Jewish people,
instead of waiting for the end of days, sought David,
their king, and the Lord their God. And they came
(19:23):
with all to the Lord just recently. You don't. Only
the nation will do that at the end of days,
but individually, Jewish people do that all the time. So.
But when in saying seeking David their king, it's talking
about the Son of David, the greater son of David. Okay.
S3 (19:40):
Yeah. And one of the things I found was this
is while David is expected to have a prominent role,
the Scripture doesn't explicitly state that he will share a
throne with Jesus. So that makes very much sense, doesn't it?
S1 (19:52):
Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, I don't know what kind
of role he'll have. Uh, the reason people think he'll
have a prominent role are those verses where it talks
about David ruling over the people, but it's not. Again,
in every one of those passages, I believe it's not
talking about literal, David. It's talking about the literal Son
of David, the Messiah. So okay.
S3 (20:11):
Thank you. Thanks, Michael. Appreciate it. I've just heard you
a couple times on the radio, and I love the program.
Thank you very much.
S1 (20:16):
Thank you so much, I appreciate it. Uh, we're going
to talk with Tony, uh, in Ketchikan, Alaska, on Abc-Tv.
I guess in Alaska, they have five letters in their stations.
Welcome to open line, Tony. How can I help you today?
S4 (20:31):
Yes. Good morning doctor. I have a question and a comment,
if you please. And I just to say that I
finally became a kitchen table coffee partner, and I.
S1 (20:42):
Oh. Thank you.
S4 (20:44):
Oh, no. Thank you sir. And they enjoy the the
gift that they send me. It's a beautiful cup of coffee. Uh.
S1 (20:51):
Coffee cup. Great. I'm glad. You know, we drink a
lot of coffee or tea. I love for tea. Also, uh,
here on Open Line. Hey, uh, how can I help you?
What's your question?
S4 (21:02):
I the question is regarding revelation 13 one three, verse
16 and the 14th verse 11, and the best way
I can describe it to you, my comment or my
question is that I imagine the Cowboys, when they round
up the cows and to brand them so the cows
trying to run away, and the cowboys, they circle the
(21:25):
cow and then they rope and and they put them
on the ground by force and then they brand it.
So when at the day of judgment, how God is
going to judge me or anyone with a mark of
the beast because we got the mark by sheer force.
Are we going to be God to send us into hell?
Or how is it going to judge us?
S1 (21:45):
Well, first of all, let me just say I don't
believe that you or I will be there. I think
the the rapture, the Lord will descend with a shout
and snatch us away. The body of the Messiah. Away
before this ever happens. And so I don't think it's
possible for you to receive the mark of the beast
that's right up front. But even though there will be
(22:08):
and there will be believers in the tribulation period, if
you read revelation 1316, it says that he requires everyone,
small and great, rich and poor, free and slave to
be given a mark on his right hand or on
his forehead so that no one can buy or sell
unless he has the mark, the beast's name, or the
number of his name. So it's something that he requires
(22:29):
for economic participation. It's not something that they will round
people up and do to them. There will always be
an element of choice. Uh, sort of. I yeah, I
hate to say this, but there are some governments that
made the, uh, Covid vaccine required. Uh, and it's not
(22:51):
like they rounded people up and gave it to them
against their will, but they were basically said, you can't
enter this arena. You can't, uh, go to this country,
you can't do anything unless you are vaccinated. So it
was a requirement and people could choose, say, well, I'm
not going to do that. I'm not going to do that.
That's how it turned out. Uh, so I think that, uh, I,
(23:16):
I wouldn't, uh, be concerned about it because it's always
going to be a matter of choice. And also it's
not going to be an issue for you because you
and I will be taken away First. Okay, Tony.
S4 (23:28):
I have a comment for you and I believe you
will ask this. You will like this one. What it
would be. Because with so many questions in the Bible,
what it would be for the open line to be
available 27 7/24 every day available.
S1 (23:45):
I don't know. We'd have to get a lot more
people to answer the questions, because I'm not up to that,
but it's available all the time via podcast. You can
go back and listen. You can listen on Moody. The
Moody Radio app, it's available there. In fact, you can
you can go online. I think it's about a year
and a half of program so you can catch up
right there. Tony. Appreciate the interest and I really appreciate
(24:07):
you being a kitchen table partner. Uh, in fact, let
me take a minute, folks, and tell you about what
it means that Tony said he's become a kitchen table partner.
Kitchen table partner is someone who is has committed to
give monthly. So Open line can be on the air weekly.
And just as I mentioned in the previous segment, that
(24:28):
we have a a opportunity for people to give a
gift of any size. And it's, you know, it's a
great time to do that because it's the end of
the fiscal year, and it really helps us out at
this time to to meet our budget. If that's something
you'd like to do, we'll send you that book, the
Ultimate Bible Dictionary. But other people sign up to give
(24:49):
monthly and they become kitchen table partners. And what I
do for them is I provide a digital Bible study
every other week. Trish and I produce it, and right
now we're going through the book of Ephesians, and we
go through and we study something about 5 or 10
minutes that you can click on in your email. And
of course get a nice mug apparently is what Tony
(25:11):
was telling us. But appreciate all of you who decide
to become Kitchen Table partners. If you'd like to become
a kitchen table partner, all you have to do is
call 447122 or go to open line radio.org. Well, some
of you mail in questions. The way you do that
(25:33):
is go to Open Line radio.org and click on the
link that says Ask Michael a question. If you do that, well, uh,
you'll get a place where you can put your question
and it gets put in the mailbag. Trish is going
to be in here in a minute. And we're going
to talk about the questions you've mailed in. It's time
for the Febc mailbag. So stay with us. We'll be
right back here online. Welcome back to Open Line. I'm
(26:06):
Michael Rey Dominik. And so glad that Tricia McMillan is
joining me right now with the Far Eastern Broadcasting Company mailbag.
Grateful for Far Eastern Broadcasting Company for partnering with us
and bringing you the mailbag every week. Febc does wonderful
ministry among people using media and personal outreach. It's a
(26:26):
really terrific organization. I hope you'll check out their website. Org.
It also has a link there to their podcast called
Until All Have Heard featuring Ed Cannon. Check that out.
I think you'll really like it. Hey, Tricia, how are
you doing?
S5 (26:41):
I'm doing well, thanks.
S1 (26:43):
Yeah. I'm so glad to see you. It's really fun.
And I see the mailbags kind of growing. And so
I think we should try to answer as many as
we can.
S5 (26:51):
Hopefully we we try every week. Yeah. Well, our first
question is actually a combo. We had Amy in Minnesota
who listens to KFC and Bradley in Pennsylvania, who are
both asking about how to respond to people being killed
in Gaza. Um, okay. So I'm going to read.
S1 (27:16):
Amy ask.
S5 (27:16):
Amy asked how do we respond to the innocent victims
in Gaza?
S1 (27:20):
Okay.
S5 (27:21):
Bradley's include some numbers. And so I'm going to read
these numbers.
S1 (27:25):
Um, start with this whole question.
S5 (27:27):
Okay. I will read this whole question. How is it
not a genocide in Gaza when 54,000 Palestinians have been
killed and counting 70%? Some say 90% of all buildings
in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged. £140 million of
bombs have been dropped on Gaza, which is more than London,
Hamburg and Dresden combined during World War two, and 2
(27:48):
million people are facing famine. It seems that every day
reports of IDF forces opening fire on unarmed civilians come.
How is this not genocide? And why should we support
the secular state of Israel and assume that they have
good intentions?
S1 (28:04):
Wow. Well, that's not just wanting to know how to respond,
that is, that deserves some response directly to it. I've
been very open about saying this is not a genocide.
That's mostly propaganda that you hear. But let's start with
Amy's question. How do we respond to the innocent victims
of Gaza? I think we should respond with great concern
(28:25):
and great care. I think that that's imperative. I think
Israel has done their best with the innocent victims, the
civilians in Gaza. Here are some of the things that
they have done. They've created pathways for civilians to go
to safe areas. They've sent leaflets directing people with maps
(28:50):
about where to go. They've sent text messages, phone calls,
directing people. Every time Israel has gone into a given area,
they have moved people into safe zones. Now, what I
think is a tragedy here is that typically in war situations,
(29:12):
the neighboring countries will open up the border and allow
refugees to go there temporarily while the war is going on.
Egypt has absolutely refused to do that. So that would
be the most natural thing to set up refugee places,
refugee camps in the Sinai, just south of Gaza. And
(29:34):
there all the aid workers could go. It wouldn't be
an issue. Sadly, Egypt absolutely refuses to do that. They
don't trust bringing any Gazan civilians into Egyptian sovereignty, but
that would be the normal way. That's what happened in
the civil war in Syria. That's what happened in every
kind of war situation. The civilians are allowed to leave,
(29:57):
but the the Egyptians won't allow that. But Israel has
done their best to try to get Gazans out of
the line of fire. I would say when there are
civilian casualties, I wouldn't blame Israel. I would blame Hamas.
That deliberately embeds among civilians and does everything they can
(30:20):
to keep civilians from leaving, to go to safe zones,
sometimes even firing upon them if they try to leave,
to go to the safe zones. So that's what I
would say about the civilian population of Gaza. Let's take
Brad's question. How is it not a genocide when 54,000
Palestinians have been killed and counting? Well, that's the first question.
(30:44):
54,000 is the figure that we have received from the
Gaza Health Health Organization. Now, what's crazy about that is
that's Hamas. So the figure 54,000 is coming from Hamas.
And you can't trust the numbers of a terrorist organization.
(31:06):
But let's presume they're accurate. Israel has admitted to us
That they have killed 24,000 Hamas combatants. That's the result
of this war. So 24,000 are actual not civilians, not
(31:27):
women and children, but actual combatants. So that reduces the
number from 54,000 to 30,000. A recent study came out
and found that 8000 natural people who died of natural
causes also were included in that 54,000 number figure. So
(31:49):
that reduces it from 54 to 20 24,000 leaves 30,
then take 8000. That's actually 22,000 that are civilian casualties
if that. The other thing, studies have been done showing
that the ratio there of 22,000 civilian casualties is probably unlikely,
(32:11):
but it is. Let's just say what it is. That's
what it is 22,000. So there's about a 1 to
1 ratio of collateral damage. I hate that expression because
those are people. But a 1 to 1 ratio of
civilian death to, uh, to combatant deaths in close quarters
(32:32):
urban combat. That is the lowest ratio in any urban
setting in history. Imagine that the lowest ratio of of
civilian collateral damage in a close quarter urban combat setting.
And the reason for it is because Hamas embeds among civilians.
(32:54):
They do. They consider every civilian casualty a victory for
Hamas because it hurts Israel's reputation. And so that's why
they want to have civilian casualties. They celebrate, they glorify
civilian casualties, and that's why they don't want people to
leave those areas where Hamas embeds, which is in mosques, schools, hospitals,
places like that. John Spencer, who teaches at West Point
(33:20):
in the area of close quarters urban Combat, has said
that this is the lowest combatant civilian to combatant ratio
in any war in history. In the United States, when
we fought in Fallujah and places like that are in Afghanistan,
in in Iraq, are civilian when we fought ISIS are
(33:42):
civilian to combatant ratio was six civilians to every one
combatant in the United States. So that's quite a different number.
But mostly I would say Hamas responsible. Hamas started the war.
They murdered 1200 Israelis and also foreigners. They took 251
(34:03):
people hostage. They broke a ceasefire that was existing. They
embed among the civilian population. They tunnel under homes, hospitals, schools.
They consider every civilian death a success that helps them.
So let's recognize that Hamas is responsible. Now, it's not
(34:24):
a it's not. Anyone looking at those numbers objectively would
know this is not a genocide. If Israel intended to
have a genocide, then think about it. There would be
no one left in Gaza. They Israel certainly has the
firepower to carpet bomb, which they haven't done. Now, Bradley
has looked at these numbers here. £140 million of bombs
(34:48):
have been dropped on Gaza more than London, Hamburg, Dresden.
I don't think those numbers are accurate, according to John Spencer.
And so I would say they're not accurate. However, that
I would say this the difference between Dresden, Hamburg and
London Is there were no tunnel system underground to. Protect
(35:16):
the terrorists. Hamas has built what they call the subway.
It's miles and miles of of underground tunnels, not used
to protect the people, but to protect the terrorists and
to hide the hostages. And that is why there needs
to be heavy bombardment to take care of those tunnels.
(35:36):
Although Israel does quite a bit in going through the
tunnels with dogs, with soldiers to try to avoid civilian
deaths and destruction. Now it says here in this question,
I'm looking at it carefully. Uh, 2 million people are
facing famine. They are absolutely not facing famine. That's untrue.
(35:58):
Israel has allowed much of the foods to come into Gaza,
much more than Hamas even wanted. Hamas steals it and
then puts it into their warehouses, where they charge exorbitant
prices to civilians and then use that to fund their terrorism. So, no,
(36:24):
it's interesting when when the United States and Israel formed
this group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the CHF, and they
started giving food away to people. Well, tragically, uh, Hamas
began to fire upon civilians who were trying to get
food for bad people to get food from there. And
(36:45):
then they began to open their warehouses and start giving
food because they were holding food back from the Gaza
civilian population. Uh, so there isn't a famine. It's just
not true. Uh, it's it's again propaganda. Um, and so
when I look at this, it says they're facing famine.
(37:08):
No they're not. And then it says they opened fire
on unarmed civilians. That's a report that Hamas gave that
Israel was doing it, when in fact Hamas is firing
on civilians trying to get aid. And the newspapers that
printed those stories about Israel firing on civilians, unarmed civilians
going for food, had to retract those stories because they
(37:31):
just weren't true. Here's my point. We, as followers of Jesus,
need to remember that no lie is of the truth.
And there are a lot of lies being presented here, uh,
to people. And I'm not saying, Bradley, you're making the
lies up, but we have to be discerning. We have
to understand what the truth is. The truth is available
(37:51):
out there, and we should check it. Uh, I don't
think that there's any question that the truth is out there.
That's why people like John Spencer, who is a professor
at West Point and President Biden before. And even now,
our government says there is no genocide happening in Gaza.
(38:12):
We need to know that the truth is available. Don't
make yourself gullible and believe every lie that's being promoted,
every bit of propaganda by Hamas. That's what I would say.
S5 (38:23):
Where how do we know that the the the source
is true? Or what are the true sources that we
could check to find the accurate info?
S1 (38:33):
Well, I would say that we have to be really careful.
I think there like there's an organization called Camera Org
and that checks the media constantly for the lies. Here's
what happens Hamas presents lies. The New York Times, The
Washington Post, various newspapers or news organizations will then print it,
(38:57):
and then camera will correct them, and then they will, uh,
do it. So camera org. Honestreporting. Com uh, also the
Times of Israel. Com. Those would be helpful things. I
hope this helped a little bit. Tricia. Uh, we'll be
back with more questions on the phone in just a moment.
Stay with us. That was Tricia McMillan. I'm Michael Radnich.
(39:34):
Welcome back to Open Line. So glad to be with you. Uh, and, uh,
I did want to mention, you know, we're talking about
the situation in, in Israel and the, the war with Gaza.
The nation is really struggling, even though there was a
(39:54):
successful campaign in taking out the nuclear weapons, the nuclear,
the nuclear program of Iran. It seems like it's a
tough time in Israel and as a result. People wonder
is what does the future hold for Israel? Well Chosen
(40:16):
People Ministries, one of our ministry partners, is offering a
free booklet. It's called Israel's Glorious Future. It's a reminder
of God's faithfulness about his covenant promises that he's made
to the Jewish people, and how he will fulfill them.
It's a great book that helps you understand Israel's glorious future.
If you'd like a free copy. Just go to our website.
(40:39):
That's Openline Radio.com. Click on the link that says Free
Gift from Chosen People Ministries, and that will take you
to a page where you can sign up for your
very own copy of Israel's Glorious Future. Also, I did
want to mention something that today is the last. Well,
this is the last week I am going to be
(41:01):
on a winter cruise in December on a tall ship
in the Caribbean, and I'm going to be teaching the
Bible every day. Uh, we're going to study the Book
of Daniel for this week long cruise. If you're thinking, wow,
in the winter time, I'd like to get out of town,
study the word worship, uh, and and also enjoy the
(41:24):
the warm weather on this cruise. Uh, it's something that
I think you'll really enjoy being in the Caribbean if, uh,
if you'd like to join us for that, today is
the last day. To sign up, just go to Openline
radio.org and scroll down to where you see the link
to my personal website, to my personal website, and you
click on that, and then you'll be able to find
(41:45):
out more about the Bible Conference on a cruise, uh,
coming up in December, uh, we're going to talk to
James in Auburndale, Florida, listening to, uh, welcome to Open Line. James,
how can I help you today?
S6 (42:00):
Yes. Just a quick question. If you could be able
to answer it for me, I would appreciate it. Um,
if you love someone on this earth all these years
and I'm talking about a husband and wife relationship, and
they loved each other at the end of their love,
the relationship more than they did when at the beginning
of their marriage. And you know that both of them
were saved. And then when you get to heaven, I
always thought that the Lord would say, if you loved
(42:22):
each other this way you can be able to stay
with each other for all eternity. Well, something just saddened
me because I just opened up the Bible last night
and I was reading Isaiah chapter 65, verse 17, where
it says, for behold, I create new heavens and a
new earth, and the former shall not be remembered or
come to mind. I am saddened. Can you be able
(42:45):
to please tell me, is there anywhere in Scripture where
it says what I was just talking about, where you
would be able to stay together for all eternity with
each other, and I'll hang up and listen to your response.
S1 (42:56):
No, no, don't hang up. Don't hang up. Can you
hear me? Okay.
S6 (43:00):
I'm still here.
S1 (43:01):
Okay, good. Don't hang up. Well, I just want to
be really clear that it talks about that every tear
will be wiped away. Uh, and I believe when it
says that past events will not be remembered or come
to mind, it's sort of a figure of speech saying
that the pain of the past will no longer be remembered.
S6 (43:24):
That when it reads exactly like I'm saying, I'm reading
verbatim where it says it will not even come to mind.
That kind of hurt.
S7 (43:32):
Uh, well.
S1 (43:33):
Uh, listen to what I'm saying, James. Okay. Uh, it's
not saying that you won't remember anything, because then you
won't remember. Jesus. Okay, uh, what it's saying is it's
referring to the painful events of our past, and I
don't even. I'm not even sure that, uh, it means
that we won't know the bad things that happened. It
(43:55):
just means that the pain of the past will not
be remembered. The the. There'll be a loss of the pain.
And now what I'm saying to you is this is
a figure of speech for explaining how it is that
we will no longer have tears or sorrow in the
new creation. That's what it's talking about. It's not saying
(44:18):
you won't remember your spouse. Okay.
S6 (44:21):
The reason why I'm saying is I'm still single, never
been married, no children floating around out there. I'm one
of those rare breeds. I always felt that.
S7 (44:27):
Okay. James. James.
S6 (44:29):
I'm trying to say is, when I'm reading this in scripture,
I saw my parents how they loved each other and
things like that.
S7 (44:34):
James. James, I.
S1 (44:36):
I heard what you're saying. Uh, do you hear what
I'm saying?
S6 (44:40):
Yes, sir. And also, I was wanting to say this.
When we do get to heaven, our love for God
is going to be more than our wives or even ourselves.
Because that's what we're supposed to do. Our love is
going to be so greater. Yes. We supposed.
S7 (44:52):
Okay. Okay. James.
S1 (44:55):
James, are you looking forward to having the pain of
this life comforted and removed?
S6 (45:04):
Yes.
S7 (45:07):
Well, that's what.
S1 (45:07):
That verse is promising. Okay, uh, don't make it say
more than it's meant to say. Um, there there are many,
many things that we will remember. Uh, we'll remember that
Jesus died for us and rose again. And that he's
our Redeemer and that we will follow him forever. We'll
remember that. We'll remember the pain, the the, the redemption
(45:32):
from the past, from that pain will remember all those
ones that he gave us and we loved. And and
so you don't have to stress out about not remembering things.
It's not like God has a neuralyzer and we forget
our past. Uh, okay. Uh, Uh, that he'll wave in
(45:54):
front of our heads and life will just begin at
the new heavens and new earth. It'll. It'll will last forever.
With great memories of the great things that God has done.
Thanks for your call. Really appreciate it. Well, that's the
first hour of Open Line. I can't believe how quickly
that went. Uh, keep listening to the second hour on
most of these stations. And if you can't catch the
(46:16):
second hour, you can always go to our website. You
can go to the Moody Radio app, or you can
go get the podcast, check out our website during the break. Uh,
it'll keep you up to date on everything you're looking for.
You can see the things that, uh, that are there
about being a kitchen table partner or, uh, or getting
our current resource. The Bible study across America will continue
(46:39):
in the second hour, so stay with us. Open line
with Doctor Michael Ray Dolnick is a production of Moody Radio,
a ministry of Moody Bible Institute. Be right back.
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