Chapter 13
The Birds of Prey
THREE TIMES,” HE said, “the judgment foretold by the prophets came to Israel, three days of utter destruction.”
“How can a nation be destroyed three times?”
“Because it came to three different Israels. In the days after King Solomon, the nation divided into two: the northern kingdom, known as Israel or Samaria, and the southern kingdom, known as Judah. The northern kingdom was the first to descend into the depravity that was so great that it involved the offering up of their own children as sacrifices. Though the Lord sent prophets to warn them and to call them back, they rejected the warnings and defied the call to return. Finally, in 722 BC, the destruction of which they had been warned came upon the land.
“It came through a brutal and merciless kingdom—the Assyrian Empire. The Assyrian army laid siege to the nation’s capital, broke through its walls, took the people captive into the nations, and wiped the kingdom off the face of the earth. And it had all been foretold by the prophet Hosea:
He shall come like an eagle against the house of the LORD. . . . Israel has rejected the good; the enemy will pursue him.”1
“And the second destruction?”
“Would come to the southern kingdom of Judah. In the case of that nation, the apostasy would take longer, but in little over a century after the fall of Samaria, it too had descended to the same depths of immorality and had passed the point of no return. The people of Judah had, likewise, been warned by the prophets of the coming calamity. And, likewise, they had rejected it. The destruction would come in 586 BC. This time it came through the armies of the Babylonian Empire in a siege against the capital city, Jerusalem. They would breach the walls, raze the city to the ground, and take the people captive to Babylon.
“The prophet Ezekiel had foretold the approach of that calamity as he spoke of Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon, coming to the land as . . .
A great eagle with large wings and long pinions, full of feathers of various colors . . . 2
“The prophet Jeremiah would describe the coming of Nebuchadnezzar and the armies of Babylon upon other lands this way:
Behold, He shall come up and fly like the eagle, and spread His wings over Bozrah.3
“What do you notice about the words of the prophets?” he asked.
“Each prophecy speaks of an eagle.”
“And who is the eagle?”
“The enemy, the attacker, the one who brings destruction.”
“Yes.”
“Why an eagle?”
“The invasion of the enemy would come like the strike of an eagle. The eagle strikes its prey with power, suddenness, and ferocity. Power, suddenness, and ferocity describe the way the enemy came upon Israel on the day of destruction. Both Assyria and Babylon were known not only for their military power but for their rapidity and ferocity of conquest. So the image of an eagle flying through the sky was a fitting representation of their attacks. Beyond this, Assyria filled its carved reliefs with images of eagle-headed beings, seen as protective spirits. And as the eagle spreads its wings and overshadows, overwhelms, and comes down upon its prey, so on the day of destruction, the Assyrians and Babylonians would each overshadow, descend upon, and overwhelm their prey . . . in this case, the people of Israel.”
“And what about the third destruction?”
“Years after the Jewish people were taken captive to Babylon, God restored them. They returned to their homeland, rebuilt the Temple, the city of Jerusalem, and the Jewish nation. But in time, they again turned away, hardened their hearts, and deafened their ears to His call. Likewise, they were warned.”
“By the prophets?”
“By the Messiah,” he replied, “the man called Yeshua, or Jesus. He warned the people of Israel of the coming calamity:
But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. . . . And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations.4
“The prophecy would be fulfilled in AD 70, when the armies of Rome destroyed Jerusalem, left the land in devastation, and led the Jewish people captive into the nations. When the Roman army came upon the land, they did so with overwhelming power and ferocity.”
“As the eagle.”
“Yes. In fact, the eagle was the symbol of Roman power. To the Romans the eagle represented the reigning god of their pantheon, Zeus, Jupiter. And thus it became the foremost symbol of Roman military power. Thus the eagle was the symbol of Rome at war and thus of its attack and destruction of the Jewish nation.”
“So each enemy, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, and the Romans, the destroyers of Israel, each was connected to the same symbol . . . each came upon the nation as an eagle.”
“So the day of destruction is linked to the eagle.”
I don’t know why it didn’t dawn on me before that moment—maybe because it was a dream—but when it hit me, the revelation left me shaking.
“On 9/11, the enemy came upon the land as an eagle—the sign of judgment.”
“Yes,” said the prophet, “as it is written . . .
He shall come up and fly like the eagle. . . 5
“So on 9/11, the enemy came from the skies. The enemy came up and flew like the eagle over the land . . . all nineteen terrorists taking flight as eagles over the skies of America. And so it is written:
He shall. . . spread His wings.6
“On 9/11, the enemy took up wings of metal and came upon the land as did Assyria, Babylon, and Rome, as an eagle comes upon its prey for one purpose—to bring destruction. And how does the eagle strike its prey?”
“With power, ferocity, and suddenness.”
“And so 9/11 was marked by all three of these things. The attack was so fast and so sudden that America was caught entirely off guard and, for some time, had no idea what was happening.
“And on the day of destruction, the enemies of ancient Israel came as an eagle not only on the land but specifically on the city. So the terrorists of 9/11 came specifically upon the city . . . New York City. And in the case of ancient Israel, the enemy came as an eagle specifically upon the capital city. So on 9/11, the terrorists came as eagles upon Washington, DC.
“And when Assyria, Babylon, and Rome came as eagles to the city, they came to destroy its wall, its gates, and towers. So on 9/11, the enemy came in like an eagle to bring destruction to America’s wall, gate, and towers.”
“A question: The prophecies that you mentioned of the enemy coming to the land as an eagle come from the prophets Hosea, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel—not Moses. But aren’t we here to read the prophecy of Moses?” “Yes. The first one to prophesy of the enemy coming to the land as an eagle wasn’t any of these—it was Moses.”
At that, he began unrolling the scroll. “The word appointed to be read three days before 9/11 foretold the day of calamity, the attack of the enemy, the siege at the gate, the breaking down of the wall, a rain of powder and dust, and more. But it contains yet another sign of judgment. It tells how the enemy will come upon the land:
A people against you from far away, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flies, a people whose language you will not understand, a people of fierce countenance . . . ”7
“That was also in the word appointed to be read just before 9/11?”
“Yes. It was all proclaimed just before it happened. It would be the day of the eagle, the day of wings, the day when destruction would come to America from the sky. And the word was recited all over New York City . . . Boston . . . and Washington, DC.”
I had no words.
“But there’s more,” said the prophet. He placed his finger on the text of the unrolled scroll. “In the original language,” he said, “it reads this way:
ka’asher yid’eh nesher.
“Ka’Asher means as or like. Nesher means eagle. But the key word here is Yid’eh. Yid’eh speaks of the eagle in flight. It can be taken to mean fast or swiftly. But it speaks of a more specific kind o
f flying, especially in regard to the context in which it appears.”
“Which is what?”
“It means to swoop down,” he replied. “And so the words are also translated as:
. . . like an eagle swooping down. . . 8
And it will swoop down on you.9
“On 9/11,” said the prophet, “exactly how did the enemy come? Not only as an eagle flying—but as an eagle swooping down. The attack began as the first plane swooped down from the sky to strike the North Tower. The second plane followed, swooping down from the sky to strike the South Tower. The third plane swooped down so low that it was nearly at ground level as it struck the Pentagon. And the fourth plane was forced to swoop down so dramatically that it crashed into the earth.
“So on September 11, 2001, the enemy came upon America as he had come upon the land in ancient times, in accordance with the appointed word recited three days earlier: ka’asher yid’eh nesher. . . like an eagle swooping down.”
He paused. I thought it was the end of the revelation. But there was one more thing to be revealed.
“When the armies of Rome came upon Israel to destroy it, the image of the eagle played a part in the destruction beyond what was written in the prophecies.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was there in concrete form.”
“How?”
“When the armies of Rome invaded the land, they did so marching behind the preeminent standard of Roman military power, the aquila. Aquila means eagle. The aquila was typically a golden eagle crowning the top of a staff or pole with outstretched wings.”
“He shall spread his wings,” I said, repeating the words of the prophecy he had shared with me earlier.
“So the eagle would lead the Roman legions into battle, remain lifted up for the duration of the battle, and crown the victory or the ruins left by the victory at the battle’s end. So the image given in the ancient prophecies of Israel’s judgment actually appeared on the day of its fulfillment. . . . It would happen again.”
“What would happen?”
“The image would manifest once more on the day of destruction.”
“When?”
“On September 11, 2001.”
“How? The terrorists didn’t use military standards in their attacks.”
“No,” he replied. “They used planes. And it was the plane, the first to take off from Boston on 9/11, the first to hit its target, the North Tower of the World Trade Center, and the one that would inaugurate the calamity—it was that plane that carried not only the terrorists but the ancient symbol of judgment.
“As 9/11 began, on the back of the plane carrying the terrorists was the same symbol carried by the Roman legions on the day of Israel’s judgment.”
“The image of an eagle?”
“Yes, there on the rudder of the plane . . . the eagle.”
“So then 9/11 began with the image used in the prophecies to represent the day of judgment.”
“And it wasn’t the only one. The first plane to head for Washington, DC—that plane as well carried the ancient sign of judgment, the eagle.”
“And, of course, nobody planned it. It had to be the emblem of the airline.”
“Yes,” he replied. “It just happened to happen. And the ancient prophecy speaks not only of an eagle but of an eagle swooping down.”
“And?”
“The planes that bore that emblem were of American Airlines. And the image that was borne on the plane that struck the tower and that which struck the Pentagon was that of an eagle with its wings raised high above its head, its talons extended, and its head turned downward . . . in other words . . . ”
“An eagle swooping down.”
“And do you know the number of the two flights that bore the image of the eagle?”
“No.”
“The same two of which I told you earlier, flight 11 and flight 77, the two that bear the ratio spoken of in the appointed passage, one to seven. And that ratio specifically marks the attack of the enemy . . . ”
“And the attack of the enemy is described in that passage as that of an eagle swooping down.”
At that, he rolled up the scroll.
“And so, in the early days of September 2001, the prophecy of the enemy coming to the land, as an eagle swooping down, was recited and chanted all over New York City, Boston, and Washington, DC. And three days later it all happened . . . the enemy came from a faraway land, struck the nation’s gate, broke down its wall, brought a rain of dust on the city so that people groped in broad daylight, caused the ground to become iron and the sky, bronze, and then the image spoken of in that scripture appeared in the skies above America as the enemy came upon the land as an eagle swooping down.”
“The next mystery would be the final one.”
“The final one?”
“Of the unrevealed.”
“And what was it about?”
“A sign from the time of the prophets that manifested in New York City to signal the coming of the calamity before anyone realized it was coming.”
“What kind of sign?” she asked.
“The sign of the watchmen.”
Chapter 14
The Watchmen
I WAS STANDING ON the wall of an ancient city, on the rampart. It was just around daybreak. To my left, standing inside one of the towers built into the wall, stood a man in ancient garments and gazing out intently into the distance. Strapped to his side was a shofar, the ram’s horn.”
“As in the seal,” said Ana, “the seal you were given by the girl in the blue coat.”
“Yes, as in the seal.”
“The watchman.”
“One of several watchmen. He never turned in my direction but stayed fixed on the distance ahead of him. I looked but didn’t see anything there. And then the sun began rising and lighting up the landscape. The watchman’s focus and gaze grew all the more intense.
“It was then that I saw what he was seeing. In the distant hills was an army. The early sunlight glistened on the metal of their shields and chariots. The city was going to be attacked.
“The watchman grabbed his horn, set it to his mouth, and began sounding it in every direction but primarily toward the city within the walls. Then I heard the sound of a second ram’s horn coming from another section of the wall, from another tower, from another watchman, and then a third, and a fourth, and another, and another. The watchmen were now all sounding their alarms.
“But within the walls there was no reaction. It seemed as if most of its inhabitants were asleep. And the few I saw on the streets seemed oblivious to the sound of the horns. They just went about their business, their tasks and errands, without any sign of having heard the alarm.
“The army drew nearer . . . soldiers, horsemen, chariots, and siege works. The watchmen continued to sound their horns from every tower. But still there was no reaction from the people inside. It was then that I noticed the prophet standing beside me on the rampart. The sounds of war that had surrounded us now grew softer. It wasn’t that the attack had stopped, but it was as if it was all being muffled so I could hear the words of the prophet.”
“Why aren’t they responding?” I asked.
“Many are still sleeping,” he replied.
“But those who are awake aren’t hearing it either.”
“They are hearing it,” he replied, “but they aren’t listening; they’re not heeding it.”
It was then I noticed an object in his hand. It wasn’t there when I first saw him, but being that I was in a dream, anything was possible. It was a ram’s horn.
“The shofar,” he said, “the watchman’s trumpet, his most important possession. In his hands it could save a kingdom. It meant the difference between life and death. To ignore its sound was to put one’s life in peril. Thus the sound of the shofar became associated with the day of calamity and judgment. So the prophet wrote:
I cannot hold my peace, because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpe
t, the alarm of war. Destruction upon destruction is cried. . . . Blow the trumpet in the land; cry, ‘Gather together.’ . . . Take refuge! Do not delay! . . . The destroyer of nations is on his way. . . . Your cities will be laid waste.”1
“So the shofar,” I said, “was sort of the early warning system of the ancient world.”
“Not sort of,” said the prophet. “It was their early warning system.”
“And today we have radar and intelligence systems, alarms.”
“Modern versions of the shofar.”
Just then, everything began to change. The ancient city transformed into a modern one. The rampart transformed into the roof of a skyscraper in the middle of a modern cityscape. The prophet was still beside me, and so, by the edge of the roof and turned away from us, was the watchman, sounding the ram’s horn into the distance. Then, as in the first part of the dream, I heard the sound of a second shofar. It was coming from the roof of another skyscraper, on top of which stood another watchman. And then I heard another and another and another. There were watchmen stationed all over the city, each one on top of a building, each sounding the shofar into the distance.
‘“What does it mean?” I asked.
“There is a month,” he said, “in the biblical calendar called Elul. It was ordained from ages past that during Elul the shofar is to be sounded.”
“Why?”
“To prepare for the days linked to judgment, the high holy days.”
“Elul,” I said. “Isn’t that the same month in which the prayers of judgment are spoken?”
“Yes,” he answered, “the selichote.”
“And when exactly are the trumpets sounded?”
“In the morning, at the end of the traditional morning prayers said by the Jewish people and known as the shacharit. Shacharit means the dawn, as these particular prayers may be spoken as early as the first breaking of daylight. So at the end of Elul, all three elements converge, the selichote, the prayers concerning judgment and mercy, which end at dawn; the shacharit prayers, which begin at dawn; and the sounding of the trumpets.”
The Harbinger II Page 9