Zechariah 13:6 states: "And one shall say unto Him, What are THESE WOUNDS in Thine hands? Then He (Messiah) shall answer, Those with which I was WOUNDED in the house of My friends." More and more Jewish people are opening their hearts to receive Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God and their Messiah. The veil that St. Paul wrote about is being removed from their eyes. For many centuries the Roman Catholic Church led the way and seduced some main line Protestant Churches to blame Jews for the crucifixion of our Saviour. Their hatred against the Jews caused great distress and distrust among them toward Christ's followers. Unfortunately, that same lying demon has entered the mouths of many RC and Protestant leaders again. TRUE CHRISTIANS, however, are rejecting their anti-Israeli bias and bluster, and are THE BEST FRIENDS Israel has. When they feel the LOVE of TRUE CHRISTIANS, they open their heart to the SAVIOUR, Jesus Christ. Remember, these apostate preachers who have sided with the Muslims to take over Jerusalem are "enemies of the Cross" even though they wear or carry the symbol, and God's judgment will be upon them. - Pastor Max Solbrekken

INTRIGUING DEAD SEA SCROLL SAYS MESSIAH TO COME, DIE, AND RISE ON THIRD DAY

Hebrew University scholar argues third day resurrection a Jewish concept that predates Jesus.

Joel C. Rosenberg

(Washington, D.C., April 17, 2012) -- A respected Israeli scholar and professor at Hebrew University is making an intriguing and compelling case that it is a distinctly Jewish notion to expect the Messiah to come, die as a "suffering servant" as an atonement for sins and the redemption of Israel, and then to rise from the dead on the third day. Based on his many years of research, and fairly recently analyzed archaeological evidence -- including a previously unstudied Dead Sea Scroll -- the scholar is also arguing that this notion of the Messiah rising on the third day is a pre-Christian concept that dates back to before the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem Ephratah. The case made by Dr. Israel Knohl has attracted significant attention, including a major article in the New York Times and several articles in Biblical Archaeology Review (all linked on the blog).

The Times story, "Ancient Tablet Ignites Debate on Messiah and Resurrection," begins: "A three-foot-tall tablet with 87 lines of Hebrew that scholars believe dates from the decades just before the birth of Jesus is causing a quiet stir in biblical and archaeological circles, especially because it may speak of a messiah who will rise from the dead after three days."

The tablet has been named by scholars as "Gabriel's Revelation" because it suggests that the angel Gabriel was instructed by God to direct that the Messiah be raised from the dead on the third day.

Admittedly, this isn't news. The stone tablet was discovered about fifteen years ago and is owned by a Israeli-Swiss Jewish man by the name of David Jeselsohn (pictured) who didn't understand its significance when he purchased it.

The Times article was published in 2008. Dr. Knohl then published a book about all this in 2009 entitled, Messiahs and Resurrection in "The Gabriel Revelation." That was a follow up to his previous book, The Messiah Before Jesus: The Suffering Servant of the Dead Sea Scrolls (first published in Hebrew in 2000 and then in English in 2002).

In the book, Dr. Knohl explains the various Jewish theories about the Messiah, including the idea of a "Messiah son of David" who will be a reigning king on the earth like King David was, and a "Messiah son of Joseph" who will be rejected by his brothers, mistreated, left for dead but will eventually reappear and save not only the nation of Israel but the world like Joseph did in the book of Genesis.