On the Hurva square in the old city of Jerusalem there is a distinctive shop, called “Shorashim of the Old City, The Biblical Shop and Learning Center” A sign on the door says, “A shop whose gifts reflect the timeless verses of the Bible and the majestic beauty of the land of Israel. A shop dedicated to share and teach and simply answer questions about Judaism, Israel and the Bible.” The owner of the shop, Moshe Kempinski,  as the sign says is always happy to talk about the Bible and talks with the many people that drop in on their way to the Western Wall. I asked Moshe about the soldier stickers I had seen at the airport.

Stickers for fallen soldiers at the train station at Ben Gurion airport.
The brown bordered sticker, quotes a word from scripture, used in this exact form in six passages.
The word is "v'ahavta," meaning, "and you shall love."

“They are almost everywhere you go in public. People, some people put it up and then everybody who lost somebody decided they would as well. But what makes those stickers more dramatic is that it doesn't describe and "he was a hero. He was a soldier. He was the best soldier." It tells what he believed would be the final thought and vision that he had. Every one of them. In fact, before they went into battle, they would write down a letter to their parents just in case. And so all of a sudden these walls, that should have been a wall of sadness and "he left a child and a wife.” All of a sudden it's not. It's like one after another. I think what I would, he doesn't say that, but what people have to remember is to always look for light. And you just read one after another. So suddenly these walls that could have been full of pain and anger even, became walls of hope and walls of a vision. And for them, I can't imagine how powerful that was that they knew that no matter what, this would only be given over to their parents if something happened. That's what they wanted left in this world, that vision.”

All over Israel we noticed these stickers. Some of the messages we saw were:

A fallen soldier sticker near the central bus station in Jerusalem says: "What is it that will repair
the world? To be good people one to another!"

“What will repair the world? To be good people one to another!”

“Jerusalem, I have stationed watchmen, for a day will come when I will be one of them”
(The first phrase is taken from Isaiah 62:6)

“In every generation, there were the people that arose and said, Here am I!"

“In everything you do, do it with all your heart.”

“Say little and do a lot."

What we found on our visit to Israel was a nation deeply affected by the war, by the surge in antisemitism in the nations of the world and in a number of conversations with Israelis, the profound impact and the change, specifically in the younger generation. At a lookout point in the Jewish community of Neve Daniel, just south of Jerusalem in Judah, we had an very interesting conversation with an older gentlemen who had studied in a yeshiva in Kfar Etzion another community in the settlement block. He recounted how he and some of his friends had walked from there to Jerusalem one night. We asked him how the events of October 7th were affecting the nation. He replied that the events of October 7th were very very horrible, yet everything is from heaven. He then told us how “many young people were connecting to God.”

A bomb shelter in Sderot Israel is covered with stickers with inspiration last words from
fallen soldiers.

Up north in a museum in Zichron Yaacov, we had a very insightful conversation with the guide at the museum who was not outwardly religious. She told us how the war had taken her children from the X-box to reality. She explained a certain passage that they recite every year at passover. It is translated as, "“This is what has stood (the covenant, or the Torah) by our fathers and us! For not just one alone has risen against us to destroy us, but in every generation they rise against us to destroy us; and the Holy One, blessed be He, saves us from their hand!” She explained how her children are living this and connecting to this, whereas they could not before. We attended a musical performance in Jerusalem where these words set to music were being performed. When these words were being sung the atmosphere was respectful, emotional and electric. The whole audience reverently sang together. They were living these words.

I asked Moshe Kempinski about the affects of the war upon his nation.

"So as people are people, there are people who won't change on either side of the spectrum. This is, you know, don't mess with my story, right? But there's a verse in Isaiah which caught me in the beginning of the war that I thought, well, this really helps me understand. God tells Isaiah to tell Cyrus, I'm going to give him gifts and treasures of darkness. And I thought, treasure of darkness? What's a treasure of darkness? And so recently, I was with my grandchildren and I said to them, what's more blinding? Bright light? If I took this light to sit in the living room and I did it into your face, that's blinding. And then what if we go into the closet, shut the door? Which is worse? So they really thought about it, but at the end, they realized that the bright light is even more blinding than the darkness. Because in bright light, there's fake light, there's strobe lights, there's red lights. You lose concept of real light. In the darkness, it's only the real light that suddenly shines through. And that's exactly what we saw in it. It's funny you're asking me that because on the way here, I was listening to a man who was in captivity for 782 days. And I don't know his name because I caught it in the interview that had already begun. And he said, that's all we had in that. All we had was that hope. All we had was that light that kept us going. And we decided, each one of us come from completely secular and some religious, but they decided that their hope was their belief that there was a God and therefore there was purpose in everything. That's what Israelis found. You find people who lost so much.

A sticker for a fallen soldier says, "In everything you that you do, do it from all the heart."

"I remember in the old days when the terrorist incidents were going on, we'd go visit the people who lost people. And the common reaction we all had, and this war made it even more impactful, is you always say, you know, I came to strengthen, but I walked away strengthened. And so you wonder, what is that? What is it that gives them the strength? I'll tell you a story. A woman, a young woman, about to get married. And the week before the wedding, her father and her brother are killed in a terrorist incident. And obviously they postpone the wedding. At the end, they did a very typical Israeli thing. And that's the key to what I'm about to tell you. It's all about being part of a people and a purpose. She decided, 'to invite all of Israel to my wedding. I'm inviting all of you to come to the wedding.' Binyanei Oma, the convention, gave the hall to her for free, put up screens in the parking lot. Thousands and thousands of people came to celebrate with her. But then there was a very touching moment. They filmed her with her friends, people she didn't know, and they're all singing and dancing, and she's on top of a chair, and she's going like this. Meaning she's not really there, she's still with her father and brother. And then all of a sudden, in mid-air, her hand stops, she looks around, she sees that this isn't only my wedding, it's their wedding too. Filled with that sense of purpose, she broke into this ecstatic, singing and dancing, and that's, I think, the secret of what's happening. People found that there's a phenomenon in America called the October 8th Jews. People who were Jewish, but that had nothing, no meaning in their life. And suddenly, Seinfeld is an example, a comedian, suddenly everybody hates them, not because of who they are, but because they're Jewish. So the reaction is not trying to hide their Jewishness, which is what people have done throughout the ages. They go, maybe I should find out what that is, what that means to me. And they're finding meaning. Everybody in their own way, but they're finding meaning. This darkness led people to find true light. Did they find the same exact candle in that darkness? I don't know. But in the end, it's all going to be one. It's all the same source. And so we're watching a country filling himself up with a sense of, okay, whatever happens, there's a purpose.

"I had a pastor brought a group here once in the store. The pastor came in and he says to his group, you know, I'd love coming in the store and to talk about Israel because you'll find out after being here how safe Israel is. And I said to him, you know, pastor, I don't know if it's safe, but it's purposeful. That's the secret of this country. You walk in and you know you're here for a purpose. And once you have a purpose, and especially if you believe that God is behind that purpose, you're ready to walk into unusual places. So the city, the country has changed, the people have changed, the world is changing. The same darkness that came here is now spreading throughout Canada, throughout the world. And it's in the beginning, it's like, okay, let it go, you know, okay, well, it's okay, we'll let them have their say. And then all of a sudden you realize, wait a second, I'm under threat here. And suddenly people are standing up and looking for, so what's truth? What do I do? And I think that's a good thing. I'm not seeing a demise of the West. I'm not seeing the demise of people who have a culture of godliness. Just the opposite. It's going to just make them stronger.”

Israel is a nation that is changing. In fact, a recent article stated, “Hashem (God) is taking over Israeli Pop Culture, A new wave of faith-driven music and style has taken over the charts, arenas, and social feeds.” The article says, “Religious music is no longer niche in Israel. Since Oct. 7, emuna (faith) driven music, viral rabbis, and tzitzit (borders / tassels on the corners of garments) streetwear have moved from the margins to the mainstream. Israeli pop culture once attempted to engage with the world, but this new wave is directed inward, distancing from the rest of the West while at the same time addressing the secular-religious divide within Israeli society.”

The events of October 7, also instilled humility in many in Israel. On October 7th, the IDF failed, the intelligence services failed, the national leaders failed. Many Israelis have spoken of the miracles they recognized in their deliverance after that day and the subsequent war in Iran. I asked Moshe about these miracles. He said,

"When it began, we saw miracle after miracle after everything, the fighting in Gaza, etc., but on the beginning of the 12-day war in Iran, they told all of the Israelis to go into their shelters, or in the stairwell if they had no shelter, and wait, they did that an hour and a half before, because the Israelis were going in. So they warned them an hour and a half. I had two of my kids who were with one of the couples, our married couples, with their kids, we said, come to us, they didn't have a bomb shelter, come to us, we built something in our house. So they did, and then a certain boy said, you know what, go to sleep, go to sleep in the shelter, you know, set up for the babies, and I'm going to stay up watching what's going on. As I stood there and listened to what's going on, which was more than miraculous, I thought to myself, oh my God, the exodus from Egypt, God said, you know what, I want every single one of you to go into your house, lock the door, and wait. And outside miracles were happening, and inside they were just even celebrating, even though there was nothing to celebrate yet. I realized that's what's going on, God's on the move, and He doesn't even need us to see it, we just have to know that it'll be done. And that's what we saw, in 12 days, miraculous things. So you see miracle after miracle, the difficulty with miracles, just you should know, especially in this country, because in America, in Canada, I grew up in a society where you can avoid God. Meaning, you believe He's here, but He's not God, here you can't avoid God. In Canada, there was a box for your faith, a box for your schooling, a box for your work, a box for your children, and people of faith connect all those things, that's what faith is about. In Israel, it's one big box, you're in this gigantic thing, and that's why some Israelis are more vehemently anti-Bible, because if it's inside of you, it's gnawing at you, you need to throw it out. So that's what's happening here. I definitely see miracles, but that means I have to change the way I live my life. That's a tough one for people, but they'll get over it.”

Moshe’s shop is on one of the main routes to the Western Wall or Kotel. He is very aware of how many people are going there and often has the opportunity to speak to them. I asked him if he thought more Israelis are going to the Kotel.

"First of all, yes, more Israelis are going to the Kotel, and Israelis have always come, but more secular, secular Israelis are going down to the Kotel, and coming back, and just sort of watching sometimes, because you know when you really aren't comfortable, you just, so that's incredible. And people from the West are coming. I used to give a picture to anybody who makes Aliyah (immigrates to Israel), any Jewish person who makes Aliyah, family, I give them a picture. I used to give out one in every month, two months, or something. Since the war started, I've been giving it three to four a week. They're not running away, they're running to, right? It isn't a point where it's so dangerous, 'let's get out of here. (Rather) 'I want to be in a place where this purposeful meaning has its physical existence,' And so you're watching a people being changed. In one other fascinating difference, in the old days, they used to say in America, in Canada, no atheists in a foxhole, right? If you're in a foxhole, and bullets are whizzing by, what do people do in America, or in Canada, or in France, or Germany? They go to somebody who's a faithful person, and say, can you say a prayer for me, or give me a blessing, right? I can't, who am I? That's happened here before, not this time. The most secular, secular people are, just, 'if God’s doing this with me, and I'm doing it for him, then I can talk to him.' That's the major change that happened in the army, and I'll tell you, there's a rap artist, who became a religious Jew, and he follows this very, very sweet, loving rabbi, rabbi comes over, and goes, I want you to make a song out of these words, and he goes, okay, so you made a very cute song, very uppity song, and it's, it'll be good, you know, God really loves me, and he makes it good, and it'll be better, and it'll be better, and it'll be better, —that's the refrain, but when he brought it to the rabbi, he said, rabbi, I need to tell you, I'm a musician, I sing for you, those words are really simple, like they're just so, like, there's no depth, so he says, don't worry, it'll become an anthem, it became an anthem. I’ve seen this on video, there's a traffic jam in the highway, something happened, a woman gets out, turns that thing on loud, on her tape deck, whatever thing she had in her car, everybody gets out of the car and starts dancing, it'll be good, God loves me so much, it'll be good, what is that, that's because they've been given the permission to declare what their soul already knows.”

Right, so this is an idea that it's going to get better because we're heading toward the redemption. Because God has a purpose. God brought us to this land, God has a purpose with bringing us to this land, and we're going toward the redemption.

"Yes, exactly right. Exactly, and now remember, in Judaism, the redemption is the end, but the process is the purpose. Right. So being part of a process of growth, and coming to God, and finding God in everything we do in the land, that's the first thing they feel. The result of walking that way is redemption."

Of course we would expect for the Almighty to work with the heart of his nation after miraculously bringing them back to the land from all over the globe. We are in this process. The ground is beginning to be prepared for greater things. The prophet Ezekiel outlines this process in chapter 19 and chapter 36. The prophet declares,

"Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God."
Ezekiel 19:17-20

The process here is: ingathering, removal of destestable things, development of an undivided heart, a new spiritual attitude of mind, removal of a stony impenetrable heart with a teachable heart, so that the nation can walk in God’s way, then they will be his people. This is a process of time. We know in our own experience and from scripture that this is not an instantaneous process. Another essential element are teachers, the Apostle Paul says in Romans 10:14,

"How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”

Paul is saying the only way to believe, is to be instructed and to hear about him and the only way for that message to be conveyed is by means of a preacher. This is God’s way. Many of you may be familiar with John Thomas who wrote in the mid-1800’s. He believed this process must begin before the Messiah is revealed to Israel, before the invasion of Gog and their deliverance, he wrote,

"Though they (the saints) had been gathered by the angels of his power into the presence of Israel’s King, preparation for action upon the outer world was not complete. Israel after the flesh has to be “made willing” to move in obedience to the commands of Jesus, as the Leader and Commander of the people” — Psalm 110:3, Isaiah 15:4. This may be also the mission of the angels. But this work of the Spirit, however, executed by the angles or by the saints, it would seem to be a necessary preliminary to a general movement for their deliverance. This is after the order of the type. The Spirit’s Messenger in the bush sent Moses and Aaron to the elders of Israel to make the people willing to remove from Egypt under their leadership, before any communication was opened with the court of Pharaoh, or any judgment had been inflicted upon their enemies and oppressors.”

In Israel today we are seeing the nation being prepared for the next stage of redemption. So while many times we may focus on what is happening in Iran, Ukraine, Lebanon, Yemen, the real story is the preparation for redemption in the heart of Israel. That day is fast approaching!  Thank-you for listening. This has been David Billington with you for the Bible in the News, at www.bibleinthenews.com.