JEWISH HISTORY
By
SUNDARA RAO TSAPPIDI
PHILIPS PUBLICATIONS
D.No. 47-2-7, Lourdunagar, Gunadala,
VIJAYAWADA - 520004. A.P., India.
Phone 0866-2451783
JEWISH HISTORY
Sundara Rao Ts.
First Edition - November 2013
(C) The author
Rs.75/-
Price :
Published by :
PHILIPS PUBLICATIONS
D.No. 47-2-7, Lourdunagar, Gunadala,
Vijayawada - 520 004. A.P., India.
Phone : 0866 - 2451783.
A WORD ON THIS OPUS
Bro. Sundrara Rao has been my best friend for over three decades as we have been in the same profession of teaching. In the recent years he has given himself to acquiring Biblical erudition and the result is some books he has penned. His knowledge of the history of Israel is praiseworthy. This present book, JEWISH HISTORY, I’m confident that Christian world will be benefited by reading this wonderful book and educate themselves about God’s people-the Israelites in history-yesterday, today and tomorrow.
I’m privileged to give a write-up on this book Bro. Sundara Rao has completed. I find the information in the pages to be profound and useful. The language is so simple that any lay person with some exposure to English will be able to comprehend the contents. His style is easy. All the chapters have a unique presentation juxtaposing the ideas he had wanted to convey. Personally, I have come across the Replacement theology to be nicely incorporated in the context. Chapter six is a very clear presentation of the History of Israel
Many people want to do something but their ideas never come to reality. Some people do something but wouldn’t get the acclaim. But Bro Sundara Rao has excelled those and made his vision real and useful to the readers. He deserves our applause.
May our Living Lord bless his endeavors for glory, especially this piece of work. November 12, 2013 in the year out of Lord
Dr J.S BOSE
M.A., M.Th (USA)., Th.D Teaching Elder / Pastor Andhra Bible Chapel Machavaram, Vijayawada – 4 A.P. 520004, India. and Prof. of Communication Superwhizz, Vijayawada - 10
My Testimony
I was born in a village in Prakasem district, Andhra Pradesh on 5th July, 1936 and my father was an Evangelist in Lutheran Mission. I did my post graduation in the university of Saugar, in English literature in Madhya Pradesh. After working as a lecturer in different colleges and even as a principal in Cuttack Orissa state. I finally settled in Vijayawada as a lecturer in one of the degree colleges.
Since 1968, God used me for various purposes. I was made treasurer for the Lutheran church Vijayawada one town and served in that post for some years. Then I was taken as a member by the authorities of international conferences like “ICCC,” and “FECCC-” International Council of Christian Churches headed by Dr Carl Macntire of New Jersey, U.S.A. and Far Eastern Council of Christian Churches headed by Dr Rev. Queck from Singapore but I could attend some conferences of both due to my regular job.
God blessed me with three children- two sons and one daughter. The first one became an engineer in U.S.A. but died under mysterious circumstances. The second and third became doctors and they also settled in the U.S.A. I retired from my job in 1994 and from 2000 onwards myself and my wife used to visit our children in the U.S.A. But America is not a suitable place for old people like me regarding climatic conditions and social life. As idle man’s mind is devil’s workshop, many foolish ideas used to come to my mind and one of them was man’s mortality. Then one night I got a dream, a most unusual one.
The dream in nut shell was that I died and went to heaven. There, God received me and caught me by HIS hand. Then we both walked together for about 2 furlongs on a brick red road and the roofs of the houses on either side of the road were also with red brick tiles. At the end of the road, God showed me a beautiful church and told me, “Yours span of life in the material word is not completed”. So, go back to your place, guide the people to read the bible, and attend the church regularly.” He also advised me to teach people how to pray for their eternal life and glorify God. I suddenly woke up from my dream and found myself on the same bed. Then I thought God had extended my life for some more years like King Hezekiah with some purpose. This dream story took place when I was at the age of 70. This memorable incident is a turning point in my life. God gave me a chance to visit the Holy Land with my wife. Then, after I returned from that tour, I happened to tell one of my friends what I had seen in Jerusalem and around. He immediately suggested me that I must put all in black and white. I was tempted by his suggestion and prayed to God by shedding tears to grant me the gift of writing and God granted me that. Then, I preferred to pen the historical background of some personalities and incidents in the bible. So far, I have written 5 books and the sixth one is getting ready. They are 1.The Legacy of God’s People 2. Quest for the Living God 3.Offsprings from the Tabernacle
4.The Redemption Plan of God and the title for the fifth book is “The Everlasting Kingdom of God” And the Name of the Sixth book is Jewish History.
My prime aim of writing this biblical history is that the matter maybe useful to theological students and young preachers to know more about the history behind the characters and the events in the bible. In addition to all this, I built a church in a village near Vijayawada for a good congregation with my pension money and it’s name is “Jehovah-ji-reh.” Another church is under construction in the village of my Grand Father Near Markapur, Prakasham District. It is in memory of my eldest son who died three years back in the U.S.A.
Then, two years ago, God prompted me to visit an elementary boarding school that I studied 65 years ago. I was surprised to see the pathetic condition of the students, probably my third generation and provided them with decent clothes and Christamas dinner with some support of UECF from New Jersey, U.S.A. Some interesting believers are reading my books in some countries in their computers through WWW.UECF.NET, (United Evangelical Christian
When I began my sixth book with the title “Jewish History” I actually became week and lost somemore eye sights. Then my Grand Son an eleven year old boy Sohan Simon Koduri came to rescue to help me per typing the articles, for telling me correct spellings for certain words when I could not see at all. To speak the truth I could not have published my sixth book without his help. He did the maximum help which is beyond his age. Though he is my Grand child I sincerely extend my thanks to him and pray for his prosprous life. He is really God fearing boy from the age.
Now I am seventy-seven years old, still praying God to give me strength and good health, so that I can glorify Him through my books in future to the best of my ability basing on the dictum “Service to Humanity is service to Divinity.” May God bless us all. Yours in Christ, SUNDARARAO TSAPPIDI
Contents
How dark the Night is?...........................................................................1
Israel Becomes an unwalled Nation.....................................................15
Jewish History.......................................................................................27
Message of Nebuchadnezzar.................................................................45
How the Millennial Kingdom would be ?............................................56
Should Christians follow Mosaic Law ?...............................................67
Who is the next enemy to Israel ?.........................................................83
Importance of Jerusalem........................................................................98
Daniel’s Seventy Weeks......................................................................123
Rapid Changes in Christan Faith.......................................................135
Prophetic views of resurrection..........................................................155
How often No. 40 is used..................................................................164
How Dark the Night Is?
The word “Anti-semitism” is a very ugly one, and people are afraid of using that word at any time. Still it remains with people as a bad dream. Many people like historians, social scientists, philosophers, and theologians were asked to explain the exact meaning of that term called “semitism”. It was as old and ancient as Abraham, the father of Jewish people. According to biblical history, many races like Amorites, Egyptians, Amalekities, Assyrians, Phoenicians, Philistines, Babylonians, Persians, and Macedonians tried to plunder and harass the children of Jacob. In fact, all these nations experienced the chastisement of God, and with some exceptions of antiquity persecuted the Jewish people that are no more at present.
After the death of Jesus Christ, the Anti-semitism is not only continued, but also intensified. The people that were antagonistic to Jews happened to be Roman soldiers, Islamic fanatics, Christian crusaders, Spanish inquisitors, Russian cassacks, Nazi S.S. troops, and in recent years, Palestinian terrorists. No nation, race, or religion experienced such continuous harassment or persecution for centuries in the world except Jewish people who were the direct descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Another wonderful thing in this case is that in spite of many hurdles and persecution, the Jewish people are still in existence. Actually, God Himself prepared a formula for destroying the Jewish race.
At the same time, God defended His chosen people by saying that if humanity could destroy the sun, moon, and stars, then only they would be able to destroy Israel. But as long as the heavenly bodies are in existence, Israel’s nation also remains in existence. This wonderful statement of God about His chosen people, is praiseworthy even though they forgot Him. The universal dispersion of Jewish people with their continuous persecution was prophesied about 1,500 years ago by prophet Moses before it came to pass. “And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even
1Jewish History
unto the other, and there, thou shalt serve other gods which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone. And among these nations shalt thou find no ease neither shall the sole of the foot have rest, but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart and falling of eyes and sorrow of mind. And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee, and thou shalt fear day and night and shalt have none assurance of thy life…..” (Deuteronomy 28:64-66).
Even after the death of Jesus Christ, the enmity between Jews and Roman rulers continued for 40 years more. The Jews tried to rebel against the Roman rulers as they did against the Greeks about 200 years before. Someone from the Roman rulers tried to loot the temple and interfere with the worship on Mount Moriah. So, when the Jews tried to rebel against the Romans, General Titus was set by the authorities. The Jews were crushed, and as a result, they took shelter behind the city’s strong walls of Jerusalem.
As Jesus predicted 40 years earlier on the Mount of Olives that the temple would be destroyed without a stone upon stone, that prophecy was fulfilled in 70 A.D. under the leadership of Titus. The city of Jerusalem fell into the hands of the Romans. They ruined the temple, the sacrifice system was terminated, and the priesthood ended. As Jesus predicted, not even one stone was left upon the other. And the final result of that war was thousands of Jews crucified, many were sold as slaves, and many fled to different nations to save themselves. So to say, the worldwide dispersion, or scattering, had begun.
The remnants of Jews stayed in their places, only to surrender themselves to Romans instead of going to strange places to face all kinds of harassment or hardship. After 65 years that is in 135 A.D., those remaining Jews could take off the yoke of Roman oppression one more time. Then it was on that occasion a highly esteemed Rabbi, Akiba, came to lime light as a long promised messiah and a deliverer of Jews from the clutches of Romans. With Rabbinic sanction, a great number of Israelites joined their hands to fight against the hated Romans. The situation was so pathetic that about a half-million Israelite men, women,
How dark the Night is?
and children were killed in that battle. Rabbi Akiba was also captured, then tortured, and finally killed. The whole city of Jerusalem, where the house of God was in existence, was leveled and ploughed over. Then the Romans built a city of their own by name “AeliaCapitdina”, and Jews were not allowed to step into that city and whoever trespassed, the punishment was death. But in 476 A.D. after a few centuries, the Roman power began to decline due to corruption and other mistakes. Just at that time in the deserts of Arabia, a new religion came into existence. The founder of that religion was Mohammed, otherwise known as Prophet Mohammad.
He visited Mecca and Medina, then he understood clearly the word of God in both Judaism and Christianity. He finally wrote his own book to Muslims called “ The Quran”. It is the holy book of the Islamic faith with Ishmael rather than Isaac, the son of Abraham to be sacrificed by him. Then in the 7th century, the followers of Mohammad left Arabia and attacked some places like Persia (the modern Iran), then southern France, and Israel also they conquered many nations.
In some places of Jerusalem where Abraham tried to sacrifice his only begotten son, Isaac, to God on the Mount Moriah, the place where King Solomon built the Temple of God and Herodiam; all these places were taken by the Muslims during their regime. Then they built the Dome of the Rock, a place according to Islamic teaching, Mohammad went to heaven from that place only. They built “AL AQSA”, the mosque which was considered to be the most sacred place after Mecca and Medina. All this happened when Muslims were in power. They occupied the places of Jews and made them their own. Now, continuous struggle and misunderstanding has been going on between the Jews and Muslims today in Jerusalem. The Muslims were in power for about 5 centuries, and then came the Crusaders.
The Crusaders in Europe thought about the Holy Land, how it was in the hands of Muslims. They wanted to do something to the Jewish nation. They were under the leadership of “Richard Lionheart” at that time. They
3Jewish History
launched an attack against Israel in 1099 A.D. Their aim was to liberate Israel from the cruel hands of the enemy. So, those Crusaders, with their armies, marched toward the Holy Land from Europe because they were under the impression that if they do anything good for the people of God, they would secure a place in heaven. This idea prompted them to come all the way from Europe to Israel, the Promised Land. But they killed, raped, and robbed the Jews on the way while passing through some villages. Finally, the first batch of Crusaders reached the Holy Land. These people, in their eagerness, wished to cleanse the Holy Land, which was polluted for centuries. They rounded up as many Jews as possible, pushed them into the synagogue, and killed men, women, and children with fire. By this act, they cleansed the Holy Land, but also for the salvation of the sick and sinned in the world.
After they entered Israel, they controlled her for about 100 years. Then, they were also driven out by the troops of Saladin the Magnificent from the east. The Holy Land was continuously drenched in blood until it was captured by the Ottoman Turk in 1516. In his rule, the land owners were heavily taxed, basing on the number of trees they possessed in their lands. So as to reduce the tax amount, they began to cut down the trees,they even cut the trees in the forest and made it barren. These conditions did not stop the wars. In the year 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte of France came with a powerful army and entered Israel through Egypt with the confidence of destroying the Ottoman’s Turkish empire. But he was miserably defeated in a place called modern Heifa and returned to France.
This ancient land had her own historical and biblical importance and glory in the days of King David and King Solomon, and many other kings ruled with the banner of Davidic dynastic rulers. It was also the birthplace of the son of God and the son of man. Such a great nation lost all her pomp and glory because she was ruled by heathens only for many centuries. It remained as a small town surrounded by almost ruined villages. Then it was just ruled by a governor appointed by the Sultan in Turkey. For many centuries, this
How dark the Night is?
Holy Land was governed by Romans, Muslims, Crusaders, Saracens, and Turks. This promised land, where the house of God was built, where the son of God was born, where the glory of the omnipotent pervaded such a spiritual center of the world was looked down upon by all types of heathens. They misused the land, they abused the land, and they persecuted the land. All these dynasties ruled this land according to their whims and fancies. They had gone and they were no more. But the Jews, God’s chosen people, remained in that land by bearing all kinds of atrocities because it was a chosen land of their forefathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The heathen rulers, particularly Assyrians and Romans, made them scatter into many nations, and they lived an ignominious life for centuries in those strange places.
Spreading of Persecution
The atrocities and persecution committed by various people upon Jews and the Holy Land were remarkable and beyond comprehension. In the year 1096, as many as 12,000 Jews were killed in Germany within three months. Many Jews were banished from England in 1290. In 1306 also Jews were banished from France. Then, in 1348, Jews were blamed for the spreading of European plague that caused the death of many. The year 1492 was very important in American history because Christopher Columbus, a world famous adventurer, discovered America. In the same year, Ferdinand and Isabella wanted to make Spain a completely Catholic nation. So, with that motive the Spanish inquisition compelled all the Jews in that country to take Baptism and convert themselves into Catholics. If not, they would be either killed or imprisoned or driven out of their country. By this means, they were necked out from country to country. And in their journey also, there was no safety for them as they were met by highway robbers and murderers. False news was also spread that the Jews were killing the children of Gentiles and used their blood for the observance of Passover. In some places, they were asked to wear badges to identify themselves as Jews.
5Jewish History
The women were also forced to use bells at the bottom of their dresses as a mark of shame. In 1516, Jews were clubbed together and placed in a ghetto in Venice within the restricted area, and it deprived of normal facilities to them like food and water to survive. In the beginning of the nineteenth century, the largest Jewish population in the world was found in Russia, and in 1883 the government permitted an infamous program. It is said more than 500 villages were victimized through about 1200 programs, and more than 60,000 Jews were killed and many more of that number wounded. This elimination program reached its climax between 1933 and 1945, the greatest genocide in the world history. It was the time of World War II. The Satanic empowered Adolf Hitler of Germany, snuffed about 6 million Jews in the death camps, gas chambers, and firing squad. The Jews experienced the life of hell in his hands. No government nor any country tried for the immigration of the Jewish people. No country opened her gates or borders for the entry of those people. At that time, the Jews shouted and cried bitterly because God had forsaken them and left them in the air. No country had shown even an iota of sympathy toward them. For 1,900 years these words “No Jews Wanted” must have been written by most of the nations of the world at their borders.
Anti-semitism or Twisted Theology
The only accurate explanation for anti-semitism is to be found in the fact that God sovereignly chose Israel through her greatest son to be the channel for universal blessing and the ultimate defeat of Satan. To retaliate, the secret purpose of Satan, therefore, has always been to destroy the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and thereby frustrate the divine plan for redemption of mankind. This is the fundamental principle for understanding 4,000 years of human history.
Then what was done by the Jewish people? Or what might be their crime? And why should there be everlasting persecution that has been going on them? Some scholars were of the opinion that it was nothing but the national rejection of acknowledging Jesus Christ as the Messiah and then lack
How dark the Night is?
of correct understanding of the word of God. This is the worst type of anti- semitism. Some people suggested that the hating of the sons of Jacob was the main reason, which is the part of their strange religion. When polytheism was given more importance as they believed in one God. Their dietary laws, their strange dress, their code of conduct, and their aloofness from all people in the society, all these points caused to look at them as strangers and defenseless people. Another set of people argued that the Jews’ peculiar character, excessive wealth, and great influence among other people are the root causes for the hatred of them. There are many people in the society with ungodly attitude, and they bring shame to the name of Christ by calling themselves Christians.
Jesus Christ is not a usurper of anything like Satan, who usurped the Earth to rule over. God sent Him only on two purposes, to heal the sick of all diseases and to spread the word of God. So as to achieve a place in the kingdom of God, He will return to this Earth for the second time as the rightful heir to the throne of David. He will be according to prophecy The King of Jews, The King of Kings, and Lord of Lords and, “The Lion of the tribe of Judah.” Satan has been using his power from the beginning of the Creation to do some harm to God’s people, or His believers, as he could not take revenge directly against Him. He has been taking revenge against people by interfering in the government politics, religious affairs, and individual matters. And with the same Satanic influence, the Crusaders, programs, inquisitions, ghettos, burnings, and butchering are being done. Though the Jews were oppressed at all levels, they could withstand everything miraculously and kept their identity. The strong belief of Jews upon God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob prompted them to survive. With the mercy of omnipotent God; they faced two World Wars and yet returned to their motherland safely. They stumbled for many centuries and stumbled out of them.
Can Bones come to Life?
Prophet Ezekiel looked at the Valley which was full of bones. He went on looking at them with utter disbelief, whether they could have life again.
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The bones seemed to be very dry, which indicated they were very old ones. They were not very few, but the Valley was full of them. As he went on looking at the heaps of bones with a prophesied mind, God posed a question to that devoted servant. “Can these Bones live?” (Ezekiel 37:3.) The prophet Ezekiel was no doubt a man of deep faith. So his response was simply, “O Lord God, Thou knowest.” He said to God, “These bones look dead to me, humanly speaking I don’t see how they could possibly live, this is not a case of curing the sick, but raising the dead. But Lord, you cast the stars into space, you spoke the world into existence, you fashioned man from the dust of Earth. If you want these bones to live they can live, O God! thou knowest.”
Then the prophet prophesied and he was commanded, “There was a noise, and behold, a shaking and the bones came together bone to his bone, and when I beheld lo the sinews and flesh came up upon them and the skin covered them about, but there was no breath in them.” (Ezekiel 37:7-8). It is quite clear that nobody can question about that miraculous show because God Himself, answered in the most wonderful way. He said the dry bones symbolized the despised Jews driven away from the Promised Land in 70 A.D. and again in 135 A.D. by the Romans. As a result they were scattered among many nations of the world, so the nation of Israel died physically as well as spiritually and lay deep in the grave. The noise, the shaking, the coming of the bones together, the sinews, and the flesh coming upon them, spoke of Israelites’ physical Resurrection, and restoration to their homeland. But the restoration would be unbelievable because there was no breathe in them that means that there is no life in them. It is also clearly said in the Bible that Israelites’ physical restoration to that homeland must precede their spiritual regeneration in the land.
So an urgent requisite thing in the end time events is that Israelites’ must be prevented from their disbelief in God and making a covenant with the anti- Christ. According to Biblical History, the Jews were taken as captives by Babylonians in three stages and returned home in three stages over a period
How dark the Night is?
of 91 years. The first batch came under the leadership of Zerubbabel who was appointed as a governor in 536 B.C., then the second batch came under the leadership of EZRA in 458 B.C., and the third batch came under the leadership of Nehemiah in 445 B.C.
The Romans who ill-treated and persecuted innocent Jews ruled them from 63 B.C. to 320 A.D. They were supplanted by Byzantines who ruled the eastern part of the Roman Empire after it was divided and Constantinople was their capital. They did something good to the Jewish nation but were defeated by Arabs in 436 A.D. These Arabs continued their rule until they were unseated by Seljuks (The Turkish Dynasty) in 1072 A.D. Then came the Christian Crusaders from England, France, and Germany and wrestled the power from Seljuks in 1099 A.D. They were defeated by the Mamluks (Egyptians) in 1187. It became a continuous process the coming of one Dynasty after another and the next change fell on the Ottoman Turks in 1516. These Turks kicked out Mamluks and ruled unrivaled for about 400 years and they were also dethroned by the British government in 1917 A.D.
All the above said people came and ruled Israel with some evil intention and God knew it. He dethroned them one after another at the appropriate time. But these Jewish people wandered like vagabonds or gypsies as they scattered among the nations and led their pathetic lives for about 19 centuries till they got independence in 1948. Only after that the omnipotent and all- knowing God planned to bring them back from all nations to their ancient native land. Actually, no one can give the exact date when the dry bones began to make noise in Ezekiel’s Valley. After thorough examination it was decided upon 1897 logically. Added to that the suitable occasion was the first Zionist congress convened at Basel, Switzerland. The luminous figure at that time was Dr. Theodore Huze who said later, “At Basel I laid the foundation of Jewish state.” After 5 or perhaps 50 years everybody will realize it.