(More Bible Studies Available @ www.marktabata.com)
It is written:
Isaiah 1:17-Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow.
On October 7, 2023, a large group of Muslim terrorists invaded Israel. Their goal was to torture, rape, and murder Jews. The atrocities committed led the Jewish state to begin a massive war against the terrorists in the Middle East, as well as against the nations that lead, support, shelter, and praise them.
In this article, we will take a look at the events of October 7 and the subsequent events that have arisen. Using the Word of God, we will ask the hard questions that need to be asked.
How Many Terrorists Attacked Israel On October 7?
“A new assessment by the IDF holds that the number of Hamas terrorists who invaded Israel is much higher than the initial estimates. About 3,000 Hamas terrorists invaded the Western Negev from dozens of infiltration points on the morning of October 7.” (Yoav Zitun, “New Estimate: About 3,000 Terrorists Infiltrated Israel on October 7,” Ynetnews.com, November 1, 2023, https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hytrcje76.)
What Did The Terrorists Do On October 7?
Several books have been written about the events of October 7, some of which I have researched. I will share some of the deeds here, but must warn you that much of what is recorded herein is extremely disturbing. Attacks included mocking, beating, rape, gang rape, mutilations, beheadings, burning people (including babies) alive, and kidnappings. Several accounts report that the Muslim terrorists intentionally beheaded children. Here are some of the firsthand accounts of this:
“Father of Fallen Soldier: Terrorist Decapitated My Son, Tried to Sell Head for $10,000,” Times of Israel, January 18, 2024, https://www.timesofisrael.com/father-of-fallen-soldier-terrorist-decapitated-my-son-tried-to-sell-head-for-10000/;
Qanta Ahmed, “I Saw the Children Hamas Beheaded With My Own Eyes. Shame on Queen Rania,” Newsweek, December 27, 2023, https://www.newsweek.com/i-saw-children-hamas-beheaded-myown-eyes-shame-queen-rania-opinion-1855472.
One Fox News reporter who was present during the attacks documents that even babies and small children had been beheaded:
“On the Tuesday following the massacre, for example, a group of Western and local journalists under military escort visited the site of a massacre at Kfar Aza. There a correspondent from the Israel-based outlet i24 reported that a soldier had told her that forty beheaded babies had been found there. The number seemed difficult to believe—but given the atrocities uncovered in the previous seventy-two hours, nothing seemed impossible. It turns out that the number was greatly exaggerated. Yet Israeli first responders did find some mutilated babies and children.” (Trey Yingst, Black Saturday: An Unfiltered Account of the October 7th Attack on Israel and the War in Gaza, 139 (Kindle Edition): New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers Inc)
To give you a better understanding of what happened on that day, I share with you here some of the accounts of those who lived through it-including survivors, family members of survivors, and rescue workers. Again, be warned: these accounts are graphic.
““I entered the building and saw a small mound at the end of the corridor. I called my team to come and lift the concrete in the area. I had a strange feeling. We found a child, probably five or six years old, when we lifted the concrete. It was possible to know this only by the structure of his jaw because he was all burned, from bottom to top. Everything. Burned. Completely.” Simcha told me with great difficulty that not only was the child burned, but the ceiling above him collapsed, and he was left among the ruins. But to Simcha’s and the team’s great sorrow, this was far from the end of the story. “We continued to the second room in that kindergarten, where we found a very small three or four-year-old child. We witnessed a very, very shocking scene. He had a knife stuck in his head, inside the skull. On the floor was a hammer whose handle was completely burned, and on the hammer itself were pieces of the toddler’s skull. We put both children into bags.” In my great innocence, I turned to Simcha and tried to find out if there were adults who stayed in the building. Simcha told me that he and the team searched for the responsible adult who was there, who probably watched over those children before and during the inferno, but they did not find him. “When we continued to search the house, what we did find was a terrorist’s vest with the Kalashnikov lying next to it. We ran out of the building quickly and informed the IDF that the building had not been cleared at all. In retrospect, it turned out that there were five terrorists in the building.” Simcha told me that this event had an impact on him, so he insisted on finding out who else was in the building and sent his team to check that specific building time and time again. Just before Simcha told me what the team discovered, and while I was looking at his grim face, I thought to myself, it can’t get any worse than this. Two children were murdered and burned. Pieces of a baby’s, toddler’s skull were left scorched on the heart of the hammer. Per my request at the beginning of the interview, Simcha did not spare any details. “We found two more people and scattered bones. I brought a special unit of pathologists into the building to examine and scan it. When I returned to Be’eri the next time, there was no longer a building, no rooms, and no children. But yes, besides the children, we found two more people and scattered bones.” I took a deep breath-another testimony out of dozens that I was exposed to in recent months. Another testimony that undermined my faith in humanity. Once again, in my innocence, I turned to Simcha with a question and hoped to hear the correct answer. Unfortunately, I was disappointed again. “Simcha, I’m sorry for asking, but the knife in the child’s skull, I assume he, was also burned. Is it known if the terrorists stuck the knife and the hammer in him while he was alive or only afterward?” I asked in a dull voice. “Probably it was when he was alive. I don’t think they stuck a knife in his skull when he was no longer alive. From what I saw, everything was done together while abusing and dealing with the children. Yes, they were alive when they were abused, both of them,” he answered. “They put a live grenade in her hand so she wouldn’t move and raped her. We found her bent forward, naked and shot. In another building, there were thirty bodies, most of them naked women. There is no doubt that there was a massive rape there.” Simcha continued to talk about the inferno that took place in Kibbutz Be’eri, and the horrors he experienced at the blood-filled kibbutz were far from over. “From the kindergarten where we found the two children, one burned and the other burned with pieces of the skull outside, we continued to buildings number 46 and 47. They warned us in advance that on the left side of the buildings, there was still a terrorist hiding with a vest and grenades on him and that in the center of the building, there was a very, very sharp smell.” The warnings did not prevent Simcha and his team from continuing. They entered the building, immediately saw a piece of tin, and moved it. A mattress was revealed before their eyes. “We cut the mattress and managed to pull half of it out of the way, and then we saw a woman bent forward, naked. We dug around her to extract her body. While we were taking out her body, we found another body underneath. It was also naked.” Since there were two civilian bodies, not a terrorist body, I had no choice but to ask Simcha. “I’m sorry for asking. Were they a couple that was killed while having sex, or are we talking about rape?” Simcha paused for a few seconds, took deep breaths, and answered, “This is not for us to check. We are not pathologists, but yes, these are civilian bodies.” After he answered, I wondered if it could be a couple that just wanted to fulfill their love. But how could it be when the couple knew that outside, there was an inferno that had never been seen before? Did they feel death, and instead of hiding, did they decide to be together in the last moments? Did they not know or were not exposed to what was happening? Were the terrorists who invaded the kibbutz the ones who forced them to have sex and then murdered the couple? I immediately understood that this could be one of many events for which we will probably never get complete, straightforward answers to. Simcha continued his testimony and shook me even more, “In this building, they found thirty more bodies, most of them women, and all of them were naked.” It was inevitable for me to interrupt and ask, “That is, there is no choice but to conclude that there was rape there, maybe even group rape.” This time, Simcha had no doubt, “Definitely. Definitely, when you see these things, there is no doubt about them. There was rape there.” In another house in Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the main slaughter centers of the disaster that befell the State of Israel, Simcha said that he was exposed to more horrors. “We found a woman who was bent forward on the bed. Her lower body was naked, and as we were approaching to turn her over to extract the body, we found a grenade in her hand, without the pin. They shot her in the head. Here there were no doubts whether she was raped or not raped. In the pose, she was lying, and with an active grenade in her hand, there is no doubt.” Although I am already twenty-three years old and define myself as someone who has been through a lot in his life, I immediately stopped Simcha. “So why did they put a grenade in her hand if they shot her eventually?” Even now, in retrospect, I do not know why I asked this. Am I so naive, or perhaps I am trying to deny the incomprehensible reality that was right before my eyes? Simcha answered simply and with chilling composure, “So she wouldn’t move. While they were raping her, they trapped her in such a way that if she moved, it would explode. They knew she wouldn’t want to die, so they put her in that situation.” He emphasized that fortunately for him and the team, the grenade did not explode. “In one second, it could have exploded on us. Her hand could have opened in a second, and the grenade could have slipped. We laid her back and ran out.”” (Alon Pentzel, Testimonies Without Boundaries: Israel: October 7th 2023, 14-20 (Kindle Edition): Spines)
Again:
“Six family members who simply became one block when they were burned while still alive. The baby’s body was stuck to his mother’s body. The atrocities? They were also committed by the residents of the Gaza Strip themselves.” The interview with ZAKA volunteer Jamal Warraqy was challenging to schedule. It was postponed several times due to urgent ZAKA events, including a fatal car accident. Even when we met, Jamal was in an ambulance after a long work day. During the testimony, we had to stop due to calls coming in from the organization’s liaison about an active shooter nearby. Jamal has been a ZAKA volunteer for thirteen years, an Israeli-Muslim who, like others, witnessed the atrocities of October 7th. While wearing a necklace bearing the message ‘bring our hostages back,’ he said, “When we arrived at the festival, and then the kibbutz, my nightmare began. Everything I thought I had seen in my life turned out to be nothing compared to what I experienced in the South. Bodies that were burned, families were burned, people had their limbs cut off, and houses that were set on fire. There were corpses everywhere, no matter where I looked. There wasn’t a house I passed that didn’t have at least one corpse in it. They really abused them and their corpses as well.” “Can you elaborate on what it means that they were abused?” I asked Jamal. He told me that at the Re’im festival, he did not come across a single body that did not have a confirmation of death with a bullet in the head. According to him, everyone, absolutely everyone at the party, had been shot in the head. He went on to talk about Kfar Aza as well, “Everyone who was murdered was also burned. Most of the bodies I found were cuffed with their hands behind their backs, and the meaning is simple: before they were killed, they were simply abused, even children and the helpless elderly.” “How were they abused?” I insisted on hearing the whole truth from him. “I saw an entire family that was burned while still alive, to the extent that six bodies became one mass. We could not distinguish one body from another because they were burned to the core. We tried to locate the baby in the family, and his body was stuck to his mother’s body, probably because they were burned alive. Apparently, the mother just hugged her baby while they were burned together. From one mass of charcoal, we had to start understanding who the child was and who the father was. It seems that some of the children in that family held their parents while they were being burned, and one of them was also in the middle between the parents.” Jamal said that every time he thought he had seen the worst, the following scene managed to surprise him. Like Reuven, he also testified that Hamas’s terrorists booby-trapped bodies. “I was treating a resident who was shot, and I recognized a charge under the shirt. Grenades were hidden under the cavities. They were waiting for us to arrive and for the traps to be activated. It was like this with almost everybody we treated.” Jamal did not skimp on the details either and shared some insights into this scene as well. “The massacre that took place was indeed carried out by the Nohba terrorists (Ezz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades), but the atrocities that were carried out were done by the Gaza residents who entered after them. I’m talking about the rape, the abuse, the looting.” Since this is the first time I have heard that the residents of Gaza were also the ones who participated in the atrocities, at least broadly as described by Jamal, I had to find out. “Wait, then explain to me the difference between the activities of the Nohba and the activities of the residents of Gaza,” I asked. “The Nohba did the shooting, the massacre itself. But the real abuse was carried out by residents.” I asked one more time to make sure. “Gaza residents who entered through the gaps in the fence and abused the residents?” He nodded and replied. “They entered with the Hamas terrorists together through the gaps in the fence.” Immediately afterward, Jamal said something that I had never heard, even from the Jewish ZAKA volunteers, “At that moment, you realize what kind of people you are dealing with.”” (Alon Pentzel, Testimonies Without Boundaries: Israel: October 7th 2023, 47-49 (Kindle Edition): Spines)
Very simply, we cannot fathom the brutality and the atrocities that were committed on October 7.
One of the most prolific authors on the subject of October 7 is Jonathan Cahn. I share the following excerpts from his book on the subject.
“When the Filastin militants invaded Israel on October 7, they came with guns and explosives. But they also came with knives and other implements of cutting. What they were about to do did not happen on the spur of the moment but was planned out before they set foot into the land. They came to do more than kill or take captive. They came to perform decapitations. And so they did. They cut off the heads of those who battled them. They cut off the heads of those who didn’t and were defenseless. They cut off the heads of the Israeli villagers. They cut off the heads of Israeli fathers and mothers. They cut off the heads of the Israeli women they sexually brutalized. They cut off the heads of Israeli children. They even cut off the heads of Israeli babies. 3 The resurrected Philistines had reenacted the dark acts of their ancient predecessors. The Dragon had possessed them to take on the role of the ancient Philistine invaders. And now he conformed them into their ancient barbarities.” (Jonathan Cahn, The Dragon’s Prophecy: Israel, the Dark Resurrection, and the End of Days, 94 (Kindle Edition): Lake Mary, FL: FrontLine)
We can add to this also the fact of the hostages that were kidnapped on that terrible day. Over 250 hostages were taken by these terrorists, and the majority of them are still being held prisoner.
Why Are Palestinian Civilians Being Killed?
We have heard from the various news agencies the claims that the Jews have killed civilians, and perhaps have forgotten that the Islamic terrorists intentionally create their bases in civilian centers. The Japanese did the same thing during World War Two, cowardly placing civilians directly in the line of enemy fire. Then, when those bases were attacked, they could claim that the enemy was guilty of committing atrocities.
What a sick and twisted strategy!
Yet now, Muslim terrorists are doing the same.
“Hamas had entrenched itself throughout Gaza for a decade. Many homes in Gaza had weapons stored in them. There were factories in Gaza for manufacturing new munitions and rockets. Hamas would also exploit the presence of Gazan civilians to provide itself with human shields. In addition, Hamas could rely on international organizations to provide it with the usual cover. Hamas supporters worked for UNRWA, and many NGOs could be counted on to demand a ceasefire and portray Gaza’s suffering as requiring international intervention to stop an Israeli assault. If that didn’t work, the terrorists could hide beneath densely populated cities and in large facilities, such as schools, mosques, and even hospitals. Hamas would concentrate forces near hospitals to make it harder for Israel to strike back. Hamas had already brought hostages to Al-Shifa Hospital and Indonesian Hospital. Sensitive sites, such as hospitals and schools, were seen by Hamas as nodes of its control of Gaza; burrow beneath them and near them and Israel would find it harder to uproot Hamas.” (Seth J. Frantzman, The October 7 War: Israel’s Battle for Security in Gaza, 186 (Kindle Edition): New York, NY: Post Hill Press)
How has the Israeli Defense Force tried to lesson civilian deaths against the cowardly Islamic terrorists who have hidden behind these human shields?
“As mentioned, in 2005, Israel withdrew from Gaza. In repeated conflicts, especially since Hamas seized power in 2007, Israel kept inventing techniques to fight urban warfare as ethically as possible. Israel dropped leaflets, texted citizens, and “knocked on roofs,” sending missiles across targeted buildings before dropping bombs. Israel empowered pilots and drone operators to abort legitimate missions if too many civilians might die. Sacrificing the element of surprise, Israel has repeatedly tried to act morally–while being condemned internationally. Since withdrawing from Gaza, Israel acted with restraint, tolerating the intolerable, as Hamas built its arsenal. Now, finally, without denying the complexity, admitting that its justifications are ugly and actions often uglier, Israel acted decisively. Similarly, the 2006 Second Lebanon War ended with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, calling for a cease-fire, and banning Hezbollah weapons south of the Litani River, 18 miles from Israel. Yet, since then, Hezbollah has amassed over 150,000 rockets, and filled southern Lebanon with trained killers ready to invade Israel, who now shoot rockets daily, wreaking mass destruction. Diplomats evaded responsibility for their previous “cease-fire” calls while downplaying the unprecedented threat Hamas and Hezbollah posed. Sometimes war today is the only way to produce peace tomorrow. Most Israelis regret what their kids had to do to reestablish a sense of safety throughout the country. But they recognized the Hamas war as a war of “ein breira,” no choice. Without apologies, and without Western approval, if necessary, Israel decided to do whatever it takes to end the supreme emergency Hamas’s invasion caused. Ultimately, Israelis must fight as morally as possible, to satisfy their own consciences, not to please the world. The IDF’s main mission remains winning the war by dislodging Hamas. Still, in this just war, every Israeli soldier’s primary moral obligation remains “do your job”–defending themselves, their comrades, and their homeland against enemies, north and south.” (Gil Troy, The Essential Guide to October 7th and its Aftermath: Facts, Figures, History, 40-41 (Kindle Edition): Jerusalem, Israel: The Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI)
Even when the Israeli Defense Force warns these civilian areas that they are going to attack the terrorist bases entrenched there, the terrorists often hold these civilians in place as human shields and to use as a talking point to try and gain sympathy on the world stage. Sadly, the terrorists even train and utilize children to help carry out their attacks!
“The Child Soldiers Thus the Philistines undoubtedly trained their young children in the way of war. They inculcated their boys, from their earliest ages, into the practices and tactics of violence, battle, and bloodshed. They imparted into their children a mindset—a mentality of warfare and a brazen nature that could, without hesitation, initiate slaughter and destruction. It was this that made the Philistine warriors especially dangerous and deadly. And all the training had as its specific aim one target among all others—the Israelite. If the ancient Philistines inducted their little ones into violence and war, we would expect the resurrected Philistines to do likewise. And that is exactly what they did. While in most cultures parents seek to shield their children from the ways of war, in Palestinian culture, as it was in the culture of the ancient Philistines, the children were dedicated by their parents and mentors into the purposes of war and destruction. As Goliath was a “man of war” from his childhood, a child soldier, so of the modern Filastin children it is written: Palestinian children know they are expected to be child soldiers. 2 Swimming, Arts and Crafts, and Killing Jews For most children summer camp evokes images of play, sports, arts and crafts, boating, campfires, and new friendships. For the children of the Filastin, summer camp evoked different images—rifles, automatic firearms, military training, the loading of ammunition, and instruction given for the committing of murder. 3 As for the staff and organizations running their summer camps, they were represented by such names as Hamas, Fatah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Mujahideen Brigades. The Filastin children were indoctrinated and radicalized. 4 War was holy, and bloodshed was glorious. As the ancient Philistine children were trained toward committing violence against a specific people, Israel, so it was with the training of their modern counterparts. They were trained to commit bloodshed against the Jewish people of Israel. So too they were taught to venerate terrorists as their role models in the hope that they would grow up to likewise commit acts of terrorism. 5 So the ancient thirst for vengeance spoken of in Ezekiel was transmitted to the children of the modern Philistines. And it was no accident that several of the camps had in their name the Arabic word for revenge. The Darkened Kindergartens The indoctrination came to the Filastin children not only through their summer camps but through their society and culture. It came through their television sets, through children’s entertainment, cartoons, and storybooks. It even came through the curriculum taught in their public schools. Palestinian kindergartens were used to indoctrinate four-and five-year-olds into bloodshed. With toy guns in hand, they were trained to perform military operations and carry out mock executions of Israeli soldiers. One Palestinian schoolbook taught physics by showing the dynamics and forces involved in striking Israelis. 6 Others taught the Filastin children that Jews were evil, a danger, and a threat. Some of these lessons were given in classes funded by the United Nations. Thus the dehumanization and demonization of the Jews began at the youngest of ages. And so it was no accident that Israeli survivors of Palestinian massacres would describe their killers as being totally devoid of any trace of humanity or mercy as they performed their atrocities. It was as basic to the invaders as was the alphabet that had been taught to them as little children, along with jihad and the waging of war against the Israelis. Children on the Altars The modern Filastin culture of death went beyond the celebration of their enemies’ destruction. It celebrated, as well, the death of its own. The Filastin children were taught to long for their own deaths. They were taught that to be killed while seeking to shed Jewish blood was an act of glory. And so the Filastin children now dreamed of being killed. So too the Filastin mothers were taught to rejoice in the deaths of their children, while their little ones were led to perform mock funerals in which one of them would have the honor of playing the part of a corpse, having been killed while shedding Jewish blood. 7 Among the gods worshipped by the ancient Philistines were Baal and Ashtoreth. Both were linked to child sacrifice. 8 And so as the Palestinians were progressively conformed to the image of the ancient Philistines, they would end up, as well, sacrificing their children to death. For the Dragon willed, above all things, for destruction. And so the Palestinians were, as well, the Dragon’s victims. They were deceived by him, misled, used, abused, and consigned to destruction. For the Enemy is the enemy of all and wills for the destruction even of those he uses and who unwittingly serve as his instruments. So after over two and a half thousand years the children of the Filastin people were again being baptized into the ancient hatred of Israel, and again, indoctrinated and trained into the ways of bloodshed on the soil of the Gaza Strip, on which they had received their training in ancient times. It was as if the spirit of the ancient Philistines had returned to their ancient shores to exact vengeance on their ancient enemies.” (Jonathan Cahn, The Dragon’s Prophecy: Israel, the Dark Resurrection, and the End of Days, 57-59 (Kindle Edition): Lake Mary, Florida: FrontLine)
The Islamic Rage Behind The October 7 Attacks
While many in the religious world like to downplay the role that the religion of Islam plays in terrorist attack, the facts speak volumes. When one studies the ideology and the religious teachings of the Quran (the holy book of Islam), and the teachings and practices of the founder of Islam (Muhammad), the motivation and racial bigotry of the terrorists becomes crystal clear.
Let’s talk about the teaching of the Quran regarding the Muslim viewpoint of Jewish people. One researcher notes:
“But when analyzing Islamic teaching and traditions about the Jews, one gets a very cold feeling that the only destiny that Islam has marked out for Jews is that of an absolute and total slaughter. We see in the Islamic traditions a dark and very persistent hatred for Jews nearly identical to the ideology expressed through Nazism. The Qur’an and the Islamic traditions fully support and nurture this ideology of hatred. For instance, speaking of Jews, the Qur’an says: Amongst them we [Allah] have placed enmity and hatred till the Day of Judgment. Every time they kindle the fire of war, Allah doth extinguish it; but they [ever] strive to do mischief on earth. And Allah loveth not those who do mischief. (Sura 5: 64; Yusuf Ali) This verse makes it clear that there will be “enmity and hatred” against the Jews until the very end of the present age. So much for those who claim that the Qur’an’s scorn for Jews is limited only to specific historical incidences in Muhammad’s career. Not only does the Qur’an portray Jews as those who start wars and cause general mischief on the earth, but it also claims that Allah was so disgusted by the Jews that he cursed them and transformed many of them into “apes and swine,” assigning them the lowest “rank” among humankind: When in their insolence they transgressed [all] prohibitions, we said to them: “Be ye apes, despised and rejected.” (Sura 7: 166; Yusuf Ali) Those who incurred the curse of Allah and his wrath, those of whom some he transformed into apes and swine, those who worshipped evil—these are [many times] worse in rank, and far more astray from the even path! (Sura 5: 60; Yusuf Ali) And well ye knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath: We said to them: “Be ye apes, despised and rejected.” (Sura 2: 65; Yusuf Ali, emphasis mine) Among the more anti-Semitic and vocal Muslims, these verses have become absolute favorites. Walid Shoebat, a former Muslim, grew up in the Palestinian territories. Recalling a school trip to the Jerusalem zoo as a child, Walid relates, “The Islamic teacher would tell us, ‘This gorilla was originally a Jew.’ I look at this now and I think, this is what Nazism teaches—in its worst form. This is being taught throughout the entire Middle East.” 1 Whereas the Nazis called Jews subhuman “vermin” in order to justify their inhumane treatment of the Jews, the Muslim world follows the lead of the Qur’an in dehumanizing the Jewish race…As we trace the growth and development of anti-Semitism in Islam, we see that unfortunately it is not limited to the Qur’an, but rather seems to find an even fuller expression in the infamous hadith about the final slaughter of the Jews. We have already quoted this tradition more than once, but shall quote it again here one last time: [Muhammad said]: The last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say: Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him; but the tree Gharqad would not say, for it is the tree of the Jews. 3 (emphasis mine) This apocalyptic belief of a future battle against Israel and the murder of all Jews is a deeply held belief among many Muslims. And we must remember that these anti-Semitic traditions and verses from the Qur’an are over a thousand years old.” (Joel Richardson, The Islamic Antichrist: The Shocking Truth about the Real Nature of the Beast, 111-113 (Kindle Edition): Los Angeles, CA: WND Books)
Please notice in particular that according to Islam, the final triumph of Allah (the god of Islam) and the Mahdi (the Muslim messiah) will not occur until there is great outpouring of wrath upon the Jewish people. This is one reason why so many in the Muslim world are determined to increase violence and terrorism against Israel.
Some may argue that while these verses in the Quran certainly speak disparagingly about the Jewish people, other verses speak of them in a more favorable light. This is true! However, the words of a former Islamic instructor turned Christian provide some clarity for us on this matter. In discussing how some verses of the Quran seem to teach being at peace with non-Muslims and others call for bloody war and jihad, some rightly call this a contradiction. Notice how Mark Gabriel explains Islamic teaching:
“This “verse of the sword,” as it is now known, contradicted dicted earlier revelations like Surah 2:256 above. However, a verse was revealed to Muhammad in Medina that justified the inconsistency. Whatever a Verse (revelation) do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, We bring a better one or similar to it. Know you not that Allah is able to do all things?-SuRAI I 2:106 This verse says that Allah causes some parts of the Quran to be abrogated. Abrogate means “to abolish by authoritative action,” “to treat as nonexistent” or “to nullify.” These “abrogated” verses are replaced by verses that are “better” or “similar.” The practical application of this principle is that when there is a contradiction between two verses in the Quran, the newer revelation overrides the previous revelation. The new cancels the old. You can still read the words, “There is no compulsion in religion,” in the Quran, but they no longer have authority. This verse has been mansookh (canceled) by revelations that came later. JEWS AND CHRISTIANS CHALLENGED MUHAMMAD Jews and Christians were watching Muhammad’s teachings carefully. When they saw him change his teachings, they criticized cized him: “How can you be from God? What god changes his mind? How can you say one verse today and then cancel it tomorrow?” Their complaints are mentioned in the Quran. And when We change a Verse (of the Quran,) in place of another-and Allah knows best what He sends down-they (the disbelievers) say: “You (0 Muhammad) are but a Mu ftari! (forger, liar).” Nay, but most them know not.-SURAH 16:101 In the next verse, Allah told Muhammad how to answer these accusations. Say (0 Muhammad) Ruh-ul-Qudus [fibril (Gabriel)] has brought it (the Quran) down from your Lord with truth, and it may make firm and strengthen (the Faith of) those who believe, and as a guidance and glad tidings ings to those who have submitted (to Allah as Muslims).-SURAH I 16:102 In other words, Allah told Muhammad to simply say that the Quran is true, it came from God, and it is for the benefit of those who believe in it. This was the answer about why some new revelations were contradicting some old revelations. Do ALL MUSLIMS INTERPRET THE QURAN THIS WAY? Now you should be asking yourself, Do all Muslims interpret the Quran this way? Do all Muslims accept that a contradiction tion in the Quran is solved by using the newest revelation? This principle is known in Arabic as nasikh. It means that Allah led Muhammad in a progressive revelation. Nasikh is widely accepted in Islam. The two largest sects in Islam, Sunni and Shia, accept this principle. I learned it at my Muslim high school. I also studied it at Al-Azhar University in Quranic commentary class. I taught it at the mosque where I preached. Many copies of the Quran have a table that shows whether a surah is from Mecca or Medina in order to help readers know which is a newer revelation. Even Quranic history shows that nasikh is valid. If there were no nasikh, Muhammad’s followers would have just stayed with Mecca ideals. There would have been no jihad and no Islamic military to conquer land and people all over the world. Islam would have never left Arabia. The problem is, if you do not accept nasikh, how are you going to interpret the Quran? Are you going to just choose the verses you like best? And what are you going to do about the example of Muhammad? He did more than just preach in Mecca. He went to Medina and declared war on unbelievers. lievers. Are you going to follow just half of his example? If anyone denies the continuing revelation of Allah to Muhammad, they are denying Islam itself. Some Muslims who are not well taught in their faith may not understand nasikh fully, but it is still a foundational principle of Islam.” (Mark A. Gabriel, Islam And The Jews: The Unfinished Battle, 508-530 (Kindle Edition): Lake Mary, FL: FrontLine)
So, just like how the latter verses authorizing bloody jihad cancel out earlier verses about being at peace with non-Muslims, so the latter verses about despising the Jews cancel out prior verses that suggest being more peaceable with them.
Remember also that Muhammad was a man who was very involved with the occult and the spirit world. Indeed, his connections with demons and Satan himself are enough to give anyone pause!
“When it was the night on which God honoured him with his mission and showed mercy on His servants thereby, Gabriel brought him the command of God. “He came to me,” said the Apostle of God, “while I was asleep, with a coverlet of brocade whereon was some writing, and said, `Read!’ I said, `What shall I read?’ He pressed me with it so tightly that I thought it was death; then he let me go and said, `Read!’ I said, `What shall I read?’ He pressed me with it again so that I thought it was death; then he let me go and said `Read!’ I said, `What shall I read?’ He pressed me with it the third time so that I thought it was death and said `Read!’ I said, `What then shall I read?’-and this I said only to deliver myself from him, lest he should do the same to me again. He said: `Read in the name of thy Lord who created, who created man of blood coagulated. Read! Thy Lord is the most beneficent, Who taught by the pen, Taught that which they knew not unto men’ [96:1-5]. So I read it, and he departed from me. And I awoke from my sleep, and it was as though these words were written on my heart.”‘ Muhammad’s “call” creates difficulties. The future prophet expresses skepticism of the encounter, although he sees in his vision one of God’s archangels. Why would the greatest of the prophets doubt the validity of his own defining vision? Two possible reasons can be cited: Either Muhammad was too weak or naive to understand stand the prophecy, or Allah did not reveal himself clearly enough or did not understand the man’s weaknesses. Muhammad was deathly afraid of the source of the revelation, believing at first that he was possessed by an evil spirit, or jinn. He told his trusted wife what he had experienced. The account, passed down through the Hadith of Sahih al-Bukhari, explains: Then Allah’s Apostle returned with the Inspiration and with his heart beating severely. Then he went to Khadija hint Khuwailid and said, “Cover me! Cover me!” They covered him till his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had happened and said, “I fear that something may happen to me.” Khadija replied, plied, “Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the deserving calamity-afflicted ones.” (hadith 1.1.3) To those who would imitate the faith of the founder of the religion, Muhammad’s doubts are troubling, for what major prophet doubts the source of his prophetic revelation? The Bible’s prophets occasionally wonder how God will vindicate His words, but there is never any doubt that He had spoken. Certainly no major prophet in the Bible attributes God’s revelation to demons, as Muhammad believed that he was demon possessed after Allah’s revelation…Muhammad’s call was finally confirmed after obsessive soul-searching. searching. Given his mental state, the obvious question arises as to whether that call can be trusted. Remember that the tortured prophet repeatedly believed himself to be demon possessed….Third, later revelations became more and more eccentric. At one point Muhammad claimed to speak to the dead. Questioned about the incident by his novice disciples, the prophet replied, “[The dead] hear me no less than you do, except that they are unable to answer me.” Muhammad not only claimed to communicate municate with the dead; he prayed for the dead at the cemetery of Baqi al Gharqad. Muslim scholars do not explain away this phenomenon. Rather, they believe that he was a psychic, endowed with heightened perception and sensitivity. One commentator says that communication between the living and the dead is an “indubitable fact.”s Muhammad oscillated between revelations from Satan and Allah. The most famous of these visions resulted in the so-called “Satanic Verses.” Muhammad revealed to his followers the words of Allah: Did you consider al-hat and al-Uzza And al-Manat, the third, the other? Those are the swans exalted; Their intercession is expected; Their likes are not neglected.6 This revelation, commanding them to allow intercession to certain idols, shocked Muhammad’s disciples. Recognizing the theological logical discrepancy and the concession to paganism, Muhammad withdrew his revelation, explaining that Satan had deceived him into writing the verses. The angel Gabriel came to the prophet and declared, “God cancels what Satan interjects.” As expected, Muhammad quickly received a substitute revelation that canceled the last three lines (verses).” (Ergun Mehmet Caner, Emir Fethi Caner, Unveiling Islam: An Insider’s Look at Muslim Life and Beliefs, 304-345 (Kindle Edition): Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications)
Who was the motivator behind the October 7 terror attack?
Satan-the true god of Islam.
Why Did The October 7 Terrorists Utilize Rape And Sexual Violence?
Within Islam, we precedent for sexual abuse and rape. Muhammad’s most famous “wife” is an example of this.
“About one year after moving to Medina, Muhammad chose a wife that was surprising even by Arabian society standards. She was the six-year-old daughter of one of his most loyal followers, Abu Bakr. The Prophet wrote the (marriage contract) with Aisha while she was six years old and consummated his marriage with her while she was nine years old and she remained with him for nine years (i.e. till his death).” More than just a perplexing story about a child bride, Aisha became a key figure in Islamic history. She narrated thousands of hadith describing Muhammad’s life and teachings.” (Mark A. Gabriel, Jesus and Muhammad: Profound Differences and Surprising Similarities, 1694-1696 (Kindle Edition): Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House)
Atrocious.
In the same way, there is another practice in Islam called “bacha bazi.” Literally translated in English, it is “boy play.”
“One of the most disturbing episodes of America’s seemingly never-ending war in Afghanistan was revealed by the New York Times in 2015. In his last phone call home, Lance Cpl. Gregory Buckley Jr. told his father what was troubling him: From his bunk in southern Afghanistan, he could hear Afghan police officers sexually abusing boys they had brought to the base. “At night we can hear them screaming, but we’re not allowed to do anything about it,” the Marine’s father, Gregory Buckley Sr., recalled his son telling him before he was shot to death at the base in 2012. He urged his son to tell his superiors. “My son said that his officers told him to look the other way because it’s their culture.”[ 351] The Times went on to reveal that a former Special Forces captain had been relieved of his command for beating up a US-backed militia commander “for keeping a boy chained to his bed as a sex slave.”[ 352] The soldier had left the military by the time of the article’s publication. Worse, the Army tried to forcibly retire a second soldier, a decorated Green Beret sergeant, who assisted his captain in that thrashing,[ 353] presumably to make sure the message was received: Rape the boy again and things will not go well for you. Maybe the war in Afghanistan is still simmering after more than seventeen years as of this writing because our so-called allies treat the locals worse than the Taliban did. It’s not like this has been a secret. Less than five months after the United States invaded Afghanistan, the Times reported that it was this homosexual abuse of young boys that actually helped the Taliban come to power. Back in the 19th century, ethnic Pashtuns fighting in Britain’s colonial army sang odes talking of their longing for young boys. Homosexuality, cloaked in the tradition of strong masculine bonds that are a hallmark of Islamic culture and are even more pronounced in southern Afghanistan’s strict, sexually segregated society, has long been a clandestine feature of life here. But pedophilia has been its curse. Though the puritanical Taliban tried hard to erase pedophilia from male-dominated Pashtun culture, now that the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice is gone, some people here are indulging in it once again.… An interest in relationships with young boys among warlords and their militia commanders played a part in the Taliban’s rise in Afghanistan. In 1994, the Taliban, then a small army of idealistic students of the Koran, were called to rescue a boy over whom two commanders had fought. They freed the boy and the people responded with gratitude and support.[ 354] In January 2018, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) published the results of an investigation into allegations of child sexual abuse in Afghanistan launched after the 2015 article in the New York Times. The report was released internally in June 2017, but it had been considered so toxic that it was originally classified SECRET/ NOFORN (“ No Foreign”), with a recommendation that it not be declassified until 2042.[ 355] While the report released to the public is heavily redacted, it does reveal that SIGAR found “no evidence that U.S. forces were told to ignore human rights abuses or child sexual assault.”[ 356] Further, SIGAR reported: On 5,753 occasions from 2010 to 2016, the United States military asked to review Afghan military units to see if there were any instances of “gross human rights abuses.” If there were, American law required military aid to be cut off to the offending unit. Not once did that happen.[ 357] What a relief. We’d hate to think the seventy-one billion dollars we’ve given to Afghan security forces forces[ 358] was being misused. Or maybe the Inspector General decided there weren’t any “gross human rights abuses” because “it’s their culture.” The practice is so widespread that a powerful CIA-backed warlord ran for president in Afghanistan’s 2014 election even though many believe he’s a pedophile.[ 359] The practice is called bacha bazi. Roughly translated, it means “boy play.” It is exactly what your imagination tells you it is—the enslavement and rape of young boys.[ 360] It’s difficult to say with absolute authority, but a culture that prevents men from ever seeing anything but the feet of wives or close female relatives might have something to do with it. How did this culture come about? Well, there are well-known verses in the Quran hint at “boy play” as one of the rewards for the faithful in paradise. There will circulate among them [servant] boys [especially] for them, as if they were pearls well-protected. (Surah At-Tur 52: 24, Sahih International) There will circulate among them young boys made eternal. When you see them, you would think them [as beautiful as] scattered pearls. (Surah Al-Insan 76: 19, Sahih International) While those verses don’t specifically say what the young boys are for, they’re ambiguous enough to keep good lawyers employed for years. To be fair, the Bedouin culture that produced Muhammad and his companions was very similar to the Amorite milieu that surrounded Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,[ 361] or the people of Midian with whom Moses sought refuge when he had to get out of Egypt.[ 362] While Bedouins protect the honor of young ladies, the old custom of allowing wealthy and powerful older men to take multiple wives and concubines makes it more difficult for single young men to find available female partners. You can see how this might encourage the practice of homosexuality in early Muslim society.[ 363] Scholars of literature have noted “an unusually rich and varied body of homosexual love poetry” from the early years of Islam.[ 364] This culture endures to the present day. It’s not unique to Afghanistan. Several news organizations have reported that sexual abuse of boys is common in Pakistan, especially among professional truck drivers. Boys employed as truck cleaners in Pakistan told researchers that sexual abuse by truckers is “part of the job.”[ 365] A 2014 British documentary, Pakistan’s Hidden Shame, revealed the shocking extent of the practice; it’s estimated that 90 percent of the street children in Pakistan, most of them boys (parents, not surprisingly, tend to keep little girls at home), have been victims of sexual abuse. A survey of eighteen hundred Pakistani men found that one-third believe that raping young boys isn’t even immoral.[ 366] No less an authority than the would-be Mahdi of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, advised his followers via a fatwa posted to Twitter that “it is permissible for the mujahid [jihadi] to enjoy young boys in the absence of women.”[ 367]”. (Derek P. Gilbert, Bad Moon Rising: Islam, Armageddon, and the Most Diabolical Double-Cross in History, 267-273 (Kindle Edition); Crane, MO: Defender Publishing)
Many in our day and age deny the connections between Islamic teaching and sexual violence. It is important to realize that not every Muslim accepts the atrocious teachings within the Quran, and some may deny that they are actually part of Islamic heritage. In other words, not all Muslims are out to get us! This does not change the sexual violence found within the Quran, and its’ evident background for terrorism within the holy book of Muslims.
What Should The Response Be Of Christians?
Finally, we come to it. How do we respond as Christians to these things?
I humbly suggest the following considerations.
First, we must remember that the events of October 7 point to the reality of the spiritual realm that far surpasses the Darwinian foolishness of our day and age. We realize intuitively that the events of that tragic day speak to a standard of right and wrong, a law that exists and which was terrible violated. This is why we are so numb with shock at the tragedies and atrocities we see and witness in our world. The “law written on the heart” (Romans 2:15) may only be explained by the existence of Almighty God, and these events point to a spiritual war that is powerfully described in the Word of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). Since the primary issues are spiritual, then physical solutions will not fully resolve the matters. As such, we are reminded that vigilante actions are forbidden for Christians. We are called on to love our enemies, even when they terribly mistreat and hurt us (Matthew 5:44-45).
Second, God has placed channels of recourse within the realms of humanity for combatting such evil and wickedness. He has given the power of the “sword” to the government to punish evil doers (Romans 13:1-7). The government should do everything in its power to wage warfare in a civilized way (cf. Luke 3:14). With that being said, we must remember also that the enemy often will use human shields as leverage as part of their cowardly attacks.
Third, we should pray not only for our enemies, but especially for the victims of these terrible attacks, for their families, for the soldiers, and for the leaders of the nations involved with these matters. God calls upon us to pray for all of these (1 Timothy 2:1-7).
Fourth, please keep in mind that all of these terrible actions are in part the result of demonic religion. Let us renew ourselves to sharing the truth of God in love with our neighbors, no matter their religious persuasion (Ephesians 4:15). Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). One former Muslim made the courageous journey to investigate these matters, and he found the true Messiah is worth everything.
“To be a Muslim, one must confess the shahada: “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger.” The best way to assess the truth of the shahada is by investigating the prophetic status of Muhammad and the claim that Allah inspired the Quran. Even though my heart’s deepest desire was to defend the Islamic faith and remain Muslim, the truth became unavoidable: There was no argument I could use to defend Muhammad’s prophetic status, and there was no compelling reason to think the Quran was from God. Once again, it was not just that history did not support the traditional narratives of Islam, but rather that history proved to be entirely incompatible with Islamic origins. When using the same standards to assess the origins of Islam as are used to assess the origins of Christianity, we find a gaping hole in the historical record. The contemporary records of the mid-seventh-century Arabs, supposedly the very earliest Muslims after Muhammad’s time, show that they were not referred to as Muslims and that they never referred to their holy book, never mentioned Muhammad’s name, never referred to Mecca, and did not pray toward Mecca. Given the vast array of records from that time, especially those of the many nations conquered by Arabs, this is not an argument from silence. The contemporary historical record is simply incompatible with the traditional narrative of Islam. Similarly, the history of the Quran is incompatible with the narrative we were taught as Muslims. We had been told that the Quran had never been changed, every letter remaining exactly the same from Muhammad’s time until today. On the contrary, the Quran had been fundamentally altered, being very fluid originally as an oral text and then evolving into a written text that remained in various degrees of flux even to this day. The traditional Islamic narratives of Muhammad and the Quran are fundamentally incompatible with the historical records. These are the pillars of Islamic confidence, and their foundations are ungrounded. This meant that if I wanted to remain Muslim, I would have to do so based on some reason other than objective truth. I could remain Muslim because I liked the Islamic message, because I desired the discipline of sharia, or because I just wanted to keep my family happy. But if there was one thing Islam had taught me, it was that I must submit to God and not to man. That meant following the truth, no matter where it led. Of course, the very reason I had been investigating the case for Islam was to respond to the case for Christianity. Now I had explored every recourse, and I had to be honest with myself and assess for the last time the case for Christianity and the case for Islam. THE EVIDENCE FOR CHRISTIANITY OVER ISLAM After thoroughly investigating the truth claims of Islam and Christianity, even while a Muslim, there was no avoiding the obvious truth: The evidence in favor of Christianity was far, far stronger than the evidence for Islam. The three core claims of Christianity, that Jesus died by crucifixion and rose from the dead proving he was God, are very firmly grounded in history. Even though Islam denies these points, I concluded that the historical evidence for Jesus’ death on the cross was as strong as anything historical could be, that his resurrection from the dead was by far the best explanation of the facts surrounding his crucifixion, and that his claiming to be God was the best way to account for the proclamation of the early church. These conclusions were not idiosyncratic but were based on the consensus of scholars across the theological spectrum. 1 In other words, the truth of the Christian message makes the most sense of the historical evidence. By contrast, neither of the core truth claims of Islam, that Muhammad is a prophet and that the Quran is the Word of God, are compelling. Muhammad’s character does not make one think he was a man chosen by God, nor was he prophesied in the Bible. He had no miraculous scientific insights either recorded in hadith or in the Quran. The Quran, for that matter, cannot be shown to be inspired by its literary quality, by fulfilled prophecies, by mathematical patterns, or by miraculous preservation. The traditional Islamic narrative is incompatible with both the history of Christianity and even with its own historical records. To believe in the Islamic account of Christian origins while taking the historical records seriously, we would have to conclude that Jesus was an utterly incompetent Messiah and Allah is a deceptive God. The historical record of Islamic origins makes many scholars wonder whether Muhammad existed, and it makes scholars think the Quran was originally far more fluid and indeed a very different kind of book than it is today. The Islamic narratives of Christian origins, and even of Islamic origins, are incompatible with history. In other words, to believe the truth of Islam is to ignore the historical evidence. As a Muslim, I wanted to base my beliefs not on blind faith, not on what appealed to me, and not even on my family’s heritage. I wanted to ground my faith in reality. If I wanted to take the records of history seriously, I had to abandon my Islamic faith and accept the gospel. But that would come at a tremendous cost, essentially everything I had ever known. Is it worth sacrificing everything for the truth? Is the truth worth dying for? CONCLUSION IS THE TRUTH WORTH DYING FOR? Leaving Islam can cost you everything: family, friends, job, everything you have ever known, and maybe even life itself. Is it really worth sacrificing everything for the truth? The answer is simple: It depends on the value of the truth. When we consider the gospel, we find the deep secrets of the world unfolded. We find a triune God because of whom love is eternal and absolute, who did not need the world but created it out of an overflow of his love. In him, Yahweh, we have the Father who loves us unconditionally, who offers us extravagant grace, who runs to us when we turn to him, who makes us with a purpose and orchestrates all things for the good of those who love him. In Yahweh we find the Son who is willing to shoulder our pains, who leads us in exemplary humility by suffering for us, makes our burdens light, and forges a way for us to live life to the full even though we die. In Yahweh we receive the Holy Spirit, our Comforter, who fills us with grace, transforms our hearts, renews our minds, and sends us into the world as God’s hands and feet to serve others as he served us. The gospel is the answer to our individual pains, to the world’s sufferings, and to life’s mysteries. There is no God but one, and he is Father, Spirit, and Son. There is no God but one, and he is Jesus. It is worth all suffering to receive this truth and follow him. God is more beautiful than this life itself, and the one who loves him is ready to die when death comes, not just to glorify him but to hasten to his arms. Though we will die, we will live. Sara Fatima al-Mutairi knew this when her brother locked her in her room. She knew that there was a great difference between the way of Muhammad and the way of the Messiah, and she was confident of the gospel’s truth. She chose not to repent for her faith in Christ. On August 12, 2008, a story in the Saudi newspaper Al-Akhdood appeared with this title: “A member of Al-Hasba assassinates his sister over her conversion to Christianity.” The article shares these details: “A Saudi citizen working for the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice in the Eastern Province killed his sister for allegedly converting to the Christian religion. According to sources close to the victim, the murderer attacked the girl by burning her and cutting her tongue.” Our sister, twenty-six-year-old Sara Fatima, was certain of the grace of our God, that it was worth giving up everything to have him. She chose Jesus over this life. It turns out, she did not spend her last minutes reconsidering her faith. Instead, her heart was overwhelmed with anguish for Muslims. In the final moments before her brother returned to take her life, she posted a poem online. 1 Though he cut out her tongue and took her life, her living voice reaches us now. Here are the words that Sara Fatima left this world: My tears are on my cheek and, Oh! the heart is sad. On those who become Christians, how you are so cruel! The Messiah says: “blessed are all the persecuted” And we, for the sake of the Messiah bear all things. What is it to you that we are apostates? You will not enter our graves or be buried with us. Enough, your swords do not matter to me at all! Your threats do not concern me, and we are not afraid. By God, I am to death a Christian! O, my eye, cry for what has passed as a sad life, For I was far from the Lord Jesus for many years. O history, record! And bear witness, O witnesses! We are Christians walking on the path of the Messiah. Take from me this knowledge and note it well! Jesus is my Lord, and he is the best protector. I advise you to pity your state of being Gaze upon your look of hatred, how hideous it is. Man is brother of man, O learned ones! Where is the humanity and love? And where are you? My last words I pray to the Lord of the worlds, Jesus the Messiah, the Light of Clear Guidance: Change their hearts and set right their discernment. May he spread love among you, O Muslims. Amen, amen. To my sister, Sara Fatima, I say this: You were a Christian for mere months, yet your faith is an example to us all. May your voice echo forever, and may we follow your example as an inspiration, even unto death. We are confident we will be with you soon, in the arms of Jesus.” (Nabeel Qureshi, No God but One: Allah or Jesus? (with Bonus Content): A Former Muslim Investigates the Evidence for Islam and Christianity, 289-296 (Kindle Edition): Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan)
My friends, I stand with Jesus and His church. As a Christian, I stand in solidarity with Israel. This is not because I believe that they are the chosen people of God (that is the church: see Galatians 3:7, 26-29): but because of the terrible events of October 7. I also stand with the preaching and teaching of the Gospel, and hope that everyone-even the terrorists who perpetrated these atrocities-will come to Jesus to be saved.
Romans 16:20-And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.