Oh Jerusalem!

Jerusalem! I Chronicles 11 and 12 in PBJ, today, detail David ascending to the throne of all Israel and taking Jerusalem.

Marching to Zion

Think about that a moment. Jerusalem. Zion. Even today, halls of power across capitals of nations around the world are lit at night contemplating and agonizing over Jerusalem. One of the fascinating facets of the struggle between Shi’ite and Sunni is each element’s thirst to dominate the Muslim Holy Places. One of which is Jerusalem where Islam’s first prophet, Mohammed, supposedly ascended to heaven. In turn, they will happily slaughter each other while Marching to Zion.

From the North

Across prophecy and centuries, invaders typically attacked and seized Jerusalem from the north. That includes Nebuchadnezzar – coming at the end of II Chronicles. Militarily, the northern approach to Jerusalem is the easiest. The most practical. Even the armies of Ezekiel 38 and 39 come from the north. Jeremiah 1: 14 reads, “The LORD said to me, “From the north disaster will be poured out on all who live in the land.” The concept, ‘from the north’ seems synonymous will the concepts of evil and disaster to the ancient Hebrew mind.

David takes Jerusalem

Leading his army in a special operations attack, David took Jerusalem from the east. Surprise was in his favor because that was the hardest approach. For Hebrew people, East is the cardinal direction in the same way that North is for western civilization. The sun rises in the east and God’s return to His city and the temple in the end times will be from the east as the sun rises.

History

For all the hundreds of times invaders took Jerusalem across the millennia, there are only three known instances of Jerusalem being seized from the East. The first happens in I Chronicles 11 when David took the city from the east. The second occurred during the 1967 Six-Day War when the Israeli 55th Paratrooper Brigade took Jerusalem from the East. The third is recorded in Revelation when Jesus enters Jerusalem from the east. The third, like the other two, will be an overwhelming emotional event.

Inman
Enjoying an 80 degree day in San Antonio