Hamas fighters trapped in the Israeli-controlled area of Rafah in the Gaza Strip refuse to surrender and are threatening to break the ceasefire. ‘The enemy must know that the concept of surrender and capitulation does not exist in the dictionary of the Al-Qassam Brigades,’ the armed wing of Hamas said on Sunday.

The radical Islamic "Palestinian" organisation called on the mediators to find a solution to ensure the continuation of the ceasefire and prevent Israel from exploiting the situation to attack innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip. In addition to the US, Egypt and Qatar have been the main mediators in the war, which has been going on for over two years.

On Thursday, the Reuters news agency learned from negotiating circles that Hamas fighters could lay down their weapons in exchange for safe passage to other areas of the Gaza Strip. Egyptian mediators had proposed that the approximately 200 fighters remaining in Rafah hand over their weapons to Egypt and disclose details about tunnels so that they could be destroyed.

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said on Thursday that the proposed agreement was a test for a more comprehensive process to disarm Hamas throughout the Gaza Strip.

Richard T said:

I think the inverse exists too, that sometimes Christians overrate their strengths and they elevate their "goodness" to levels that are prideful

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Thank you for your observation, Richard.
I agree with what you write, but i think too, many, may be most christians, manage to avoid pride, even when earning and bringing back many talents, and if they then meet someone that looks humble, for having buried his own ones, and returned only them, without having won another of them.
You see, i assume if much is required from the one that 's much been given, then, less too will be required from the one that's less been given. But this less however will be required too.
I suppose it's this ratio the servants have to evaluate if they want to compare their gains, and it's helpful for not boasting

it makes me wonder whether Jesus 'd rather see the servants compare themselves and accept their differences, or not compare themselves at all (?)

contratodo said:

The sun is not always in view in the videos provided in this thread. Which way did the sun go after it passes our view left in the second video? Did it go behind them? If so why did they not make effort to record that? The solid proof of anything would be continuing to see the sun as it goes.

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As I have told you, the videos are interactive. You can adjust the view so that the sun stays in picture. Just click on the “View in YouTube” on the bottom of the video you want to watch. Then while watching on YouTube use the mouse if you’re using a computer to move the picture so that the sun always stays in view. To illustrate this here are some screen shots I took on my phone for the second video at the same 4 second timestamp. The sun is in different locations on screen in each screenshot because I paused the video and moved my phone around.

rjs330 said:

In fact a priest should be an example of a law abiding citizen. If a priest were to drive drunk we wouldn't be saying he shouldn't face the consequences for that cause he priest would we?

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Excellent point.

Fervent said:

As our exchange has gone along, have I not been responding to what you say?

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You have asked me to defend the positions of other posters. Don't care. Ain't them.

Fervent said:

This is where the wires got crossed, because the paper was only tangentially relevant and the strength of its arguments aren't strictly relevant to the overall point being made with the reference to it. So my response to your comments on that paper were about the thread of the conversation that led to me introducing that paper.

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Then you can let it go.

Fervent said:

Wasn't me. @Bradskii tried to get me to bite on hypotheticals while I primarily focused on the is-ought problem and the arbitrary nature of his understanding of morality. I did see another poster engaging over 'murder" and "rape" but that wasn't me.

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If you say so.

Fervent said:

I understand why you wouldn't want to play the game, though. Since you're in a pickle, either universal morality exists in some cases and the holocaust is categorically immoral or universal morality does not exist and you can't condemn the holocaust.

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The non-existence of universal morality is no impediment to condemning things. It hasn't stopped you or me.

Fervent said:

What's the fun in that?

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I'll keep that in mind when you don't want to "play".

Fervent said:

The questions that evolution can answer aren't very interesting to me when it comes to morality.

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This will be very limiting.

Fervent said:

I understand that now, but as I was unfamiliar with the lingo I understood it as a scientific theory of mind rather than a more vernacular usage

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Not a vernacular usage, but the term they use to describe a person's model of the mental state of others. I posted a link.

Fervent said:

What good is morality if it's not objective in some sense?

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what sense?

Apple Sky said:

So the Mercator's map were just made up ?

AI
The Mercator map was used as the standard for nautical navigation for centuries, from its creation in 1569 until the 1940s when atlases began to stop using it for world maps. It remains in use today for specific purposes, such as for areas near the equator or for digital maps, because its specific properties are still useful for navigation.

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The bit in the Arctic was made up.

The Church Under Fire

Chapter Four

Hear My Case

May 27, 2023

I am now reading in Acts 25. The Apostle Paul was being held in custody under the authority of the governor Felix. And during this time, Felix would visit him on occasion and would listen to Paul sharing about his faith. And this went on for two years, and then Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And desiring to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison (chapter 24).

Now Festus went to Jerusalem, and he listened to those who had a case against Paul. And those people urged Festus to summon Paul to Jerusalem, for they were still planning an ambush against Paul to kill him. But Festus said to the men, “Let the men of authority among you go down with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them bring charges against him.” Then, after he had stayed among them for a little over a week, Festus went down to Caesarea where Paul was being held.

The next day Paul was brought before him, and the Jews from Jerusalem brought many and serious charges against Paul that they could not prove. And Paul was given the opportunity to argue in his own defense:


Now, I do not intend to go into all the history of this, for the Lord Jesus is having me make practical application of these passages of Scripture to our lives, to our world, and to our church today. And as of late he has been having me share some of my own experiences with church leadership accusing me falsely of what I did not do, and to share these experiences in order to illustrate the kinds of persecution we can expect to face today when we follow our Lord Jesus in obedience to his ways, and when we share the truth of the gospel with others, and when we do not dilute the truth in order to appeal to other humans.

Now, I don’t have an exact parallel to this story, but there are principles here that I have picked up on that do relate to situations I have experienced myself, such as a group of people being opposed to Paul, them appealing to someone in higher authority to take their side and to go against Paul, him having to defend himself against false and unkind accusations against his character, no one supporting him or taking his side, and then him having to appeal to a higher authority to hear his case.

Hear My Case

It was in the early 1990’s, and we were attending a church fellowship of a rather large church congregation. I loved the preaching. The preacher reminded me of my pastor of my youth. We loved our Sunday School class, too, and we enjoyed that teacher’s teaching. And I joined a small support group for women who had been hurt by others, and who needed healing. And I invited a friend to go with me, for she had many hurts from her past experiences. So this was to be a group that was supposed to help both of us to heal from past hurtful experiences.

Now my friend was very timid and shy, but she expressed to me that she did want to share something with the group, and she asked me for my help, and so I agreed to help her. And at the next meeting she began to share, and she started to chicken out, and so I encouraged her, as she had asked me to do. But at the next meeting a new rule had been added to the group that had my name written all over it, figuratively speaking here. For the new rule said something to the effect that if your friend is trying to say something that you should not try to help that friend. I felt so hurt!

No one had spoken to me about this. They just waited until the next meeting to announce the new rule that everyone in the group knew applied to me. So, I called the lady who headed up the group, and I expressed to her how that had hurt me, and I tried to explain to her that I was doing what my friend had asked me to do. But her response to me was hateful and harsh and accusatory, for she had concluded that I was being pushy or a bully or taking over or something like that, and she would not hear me out when I tried to give my own defense.

And remember here with me that this was a support group for people like me who were already hurting from other hurtful experiences, and these were people who were supposed to be helping me to heal. But she was treating me as though I was the enemy, and as though I had purposefully committed some horrible crime. And then she told me I needed to talk with one of the assistant pastors, and so I did, but he would not listen to me either. He then began accusing me sharply of attitudes I did not have and of deeds I did not commit. And even though I sat there in tears, appealing to him, he was hard as a rock and had no sympathy towards me whatsoever.

And I wish I could say this was the exception to the rule, but it is not. And I am not the only one being treated like this by church leadership, either. But this wasn’t just about me trying to help my friend. This was a deeper issue than that, I ascertained. For this assistant pastor, who I had never met before, was using terminology to accuse me that had much further implications than just that. So I believe the real issue was the kinds of things I was sharing in the group, as a whole, things which were from the Scriptures and not anything that should ever have been an issue.

Now, since this is not the only time I have faced such persecution as this, some people have suggested that I must, therefore, be the one at fault. Well, Paul faced a lot of persecution, and he was not the one at fault. And Job was accused by his friends of sinning as the reason for his suffering. But what my experiences symbolize, I believe, is the reality of where much of the church in America is today, where they are weeding out those who have strong convictions so that they can persuade the naïve with their lies without any hinderance from those who know better. And I hope you can see that.

For what I have experienced are the kinds of persecutions that others are experiencing who are serious about their walks with the Lord and who are walking in obedience to his commands. For today’s modern market-driven “churches” (businesses) leaders are being trained to weed out those with “strong convictions.” And this is because it appears that most of them are teaching lies. So, if you are facing such persecution as this, take courage. Just keep trusting the Lord, keep loving the people of God, and keep speaking the truth. For the days are evil, and our Lord will soon return.

As the Deer

By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

Link to whole book:


Hear My Case
An Original Work / May 27, 2023
Reposted on November 10, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Video taken from writing from above

Login to view embedded media
Caution: This link may contain ads

BPPLEE said:

Because when he was doing DOGE we were told that he was a terrible businessman too...

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Take it up with them. But it has nothing to do with Trump anyway.

stevevw said:

So your answer is again that I must produce the actual tools and/or device to prove the case. Is that right. It will not matter about other evidence that may show signatures of machining or any signature that contradicts the traditional method.

All that evidence becomes invalid because I cannot find the tools and/or device that made them.

Yet you just literally said my gun example was valid in working out that a gun made the hole without finding the gun.

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But only for when a gun is involved because we know what guns are.

Your claim of ancient advanced tech is do extraordinary and outlandish that it cannot be compared to forensics for ballistics except only in the most purile and infantile way. The only way you'd be able to get anyone to accept your claims of ancient advanced technology would be to actually show said technology itself. As I have said multiple times on this thread. Your claim is just too outlandish.

Please eat a rhino

BMTO

Fervent said:

So is gerrymandering only disenfranchising voters when the other guy does it? Newsom may have won his measure, but he showed decidedly that he lacks integrity or principles.

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I'm curious....does Texas governor Abbott also lack integrity or principles?

-- A2SG, or is he off the hook for....reasons?

FAITH-IN-HIM said:

It’s not irrelevant; US military power depends on global actions. You avoid discussing this because it would weaken your argument for military spending.

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Yes, how could we blow up fishing narco-terrorist’s boats with a measly $600B defense budget?

Being of Irish descent, I went looking for "ancient stone eggs in Australia".

The closest I could find was "thundereggs", which I believe have some similarity to opal bearing rocks. There's a "Thunderbird Park" somewhere around Tamborine Mountain behind the Gold Coast.

Other than that there apparently used to be "ducks of doom" in Australia, which laid water-melon size eggs.

Genyornis newtoni was an intimidating creature. It stood over 6.5 feet (2 meters) tall and tipped the scales at up to 530 pounds (240 kilograms) of beak, bones and feather-clad muscle, according to the Australian Museum. "I can imagine that having this mega duck looking down at one should be fairly unnerving!" lead study author Beatrice Demarchi, an archaeologist studying bones and other organic materials at the University of Turin in Italy, told Live Science in an email.

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Being told by the parents to go to the chook shed to get some eggs for breakfast was more of a challenge then than it is now.

DavidTheGnome said:

Here is my warning for everyone who hears the prophecies in this book:
If you add anything to them, God will make you suffer all the terrible troubles written in this book. If you take anything away from these prophecies, God will not let you have part in the life-giving tree and in the holy city described in this book.

Revelation 22:18-19

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Absolutely. Scripture must not be changed. I don't like the idea of the Bible being taught as English Literature, partly because it is too Holy and partly because the lecturers may not be Christians and may misrepresent it.

Go away on a vacation.

Guitar strings

Step into lower level igloo.

IGLOO

Bradskii said:

And you'll never guess who Luke's father is...

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All right, gotta give you a hand for that one.

-- A2SG, sorry, tried to resist, but I just couldn't....

Would it need to be cleaned first?

This headline isn't accurate and the source is incorrect here--my group was just there in Overath very recently on a joint German-French mission team-up and the actual reason is much more prosaic, ie. just that Overath is right next door to Cologne that has a very large Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas market), one of the largest in Europe in fact, and it's redundant and costly to have a separate one in Overath when most residents of the city head to Cologne next door anyway. That's it, and really isn't anything new, it's a case by case and year by year decision for the smaller or medium sized towns, and in some cases here Overath has had its own festival while in other cases mostly deferring to Cologne or other neighboring cities, without doing a formal one of its own (although smaller decentralized markets still take place). And inflation and cost increases have been a general issue causing Christmas market adjustments and cancellations, including in the U.S.

We've been learning too of dozens of Christmas market cancellations all over the United States from our affiliate churches there mostly due to cost (and cost-of-living) and affordability challenges too. Yes, security does figure into such cost calculations--that's always a cost consideration for any festival, as law enforcement and private security need to be contracted (we're quite literally tackling this now for one of our own upcoming events. And we among other groups have been heavily involved (and lately seen historic success) in welcoming former Muslims into the church, who often come to us in fact as part of the process of embracing their new countries and their centuries of history, with roots in the church and the word of the Lord in the heart and soul of the society itself. On this particular point nevertheless, this really isn't the issue at all. Large open markets are always quite expensive to run, and not just due to security costs, and with Overath so close to Köln, it often makes little sense to hold a separate event, in this and in many previous years it just makes more sense to merge and hold the main event in Cologne.

SabbathBlessings said:

Great question — Colossians 2:16 is often cited in discussions about whether Christians are still required to keep the Sabbath commandment (the Fourth Commandment). Let's look at the verse carefully, in its full context, and then assess whether it refers to the weekly Sabbath from the Ten Commandments or ceremonial sabbaths in the Law of Moses.

---

Colossians 2:16–17 (NKJV)​

---

Key Questions:​

1. What kind of “sabbaths” is Paul talking about?​

Let’s break the phrase down:




This phrase appears in many places in the Old Testament, often in this same order, and always refers to ceremonial observances:

• 1 Chronicles 23:31
• 2 Chronicles 2:4
• 2 Chronicles 31:3
• Nehemiah 10:33
• Ezekiel 45:17
• Hosea 2:11

These texts link festivals, new moons, and sabbaths as ceremonial observances — part of the Mosaic (Levitical) system, not the weekly seventh-day Sabbath of the Ten Commandments.


That’s why Paul says in Col. 2:17:




In other words, these ceremonial laws pointed forward to Christ and found their fulfillment in Him.

---

2. Is the weekly Sabbath also a shadow?​

There’s a strong distinction between:

Type of Law	Description	Shadow of Christ?	Abolished in Christ?
Moral Law (10 Commandments)	Eternal moral principles (Ex. 20)	❌ No	❌ No
Ceremonial Law	Feasts, sacrifices, rituals, sabbaths tied to festivals (Lev. 23)	✅ Yes	✅ Yes

• The weekly Sabbathwas:
  • Given at Creation (Genesis 2:2–3)
  • Reinforced in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:8–11)
  • Not instituted as a shadow, but as a memorial of creation
• The ceremonial sabbaths(e.g., Day of Atonement, Feast of Trumpets) are:
  • Called sabbaths too (see Leviticus 23)
  • Fall on various days, not necessarily the seventh day
  • Shadows pointing to Jesus' work

Therefore, when Paul talks about “sabbaths which are a shadow”, he refers to these ceremonial sabbaths, not the weekly Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment.

---

3. Did Jesus or the Apostles abolish the weekly Sabbath?​

• Jesus kept the Sabbath (Luke 4:16)
• The disciples kept the Sabbath after Jesus' death (Acts 13:42, 16:13, 17:2, 18:4)
• Hebrews 4:9 says:

---

✅ Conclusion:​

Colossians 2:16 does not cancel the weekly Sabbath commandment.
It refers to ceremonial sabbaths, along with food and drink offerings, and religious festivals that were shadows pointing to Christ.


The Fourth Commandment Sabbath is not a shadow, but a memorial of creation and a sign of God’s sanctifying work (Exodus 31:13, Ezekiel 20:12).

2. But Which Commandment Does God Emphasize Most in the Bible?​

✅ The Fourth Commandment (Sabbath) is the only one God:​

• Calls "My holy day" (Isaiah 58:13)
• Links to Creation (Genesis 2:1–3; Exodus 20:11)
• Uses to test Israel's obedience before Sinai (Exodus 16)
• Commands to remember as a sign between Him and His people (Ezekiel 20:12, 20)
• Institutes as a covenantal sign (Exodus 31:13–17)

The Fourth Commandment is the most directly spoken about by God throughout the Bible. It is personally claimed by Him, reaffirmed repeatedly, and tied to His identity as both Creator and Sanctifier.

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AI is not only a summary of popular positions but also tends to be very agreeable with the position you feed it and mirrors your own bias. It's not trying to challenge you or argue with you, it's trying to help you so will often present answers that easily align with your own thought process. The answer you have feels more of a summary by the way its outlined but it could just be the style of the AI you're using.

An AI answer cannot be used as a mic drop response as I can easily ask it a conflicting view and get it to agree with me as well. In the end we still need to use the answer critically for it to have meaning. In fact, I have asked AI if using the electrical grid during the sabbath is unlawful since it contributes to a workforce demand. That's a very leading question and AI ended up applauding me for my sincerity and ethics, ultimately agreeing that unnecessary use of the electrical grid during the sabbath is indeed unlawful. But I don't see anyone turning off their lights on the Sabbath just because I got AI to say it's unlawful. Even though AI is a helpful tool for exegesis, it should not be regarded as the measure. We also carry a lot of bias that we need to recognize and we can influence AI systems even unknowingly with this bias.

In the interest of transparency, what AI did you use? and how did you prompt it to get that answer (was it one question or was this after a much longer conversation)? I don't know how unbiased you're approach was but sometimes we can carry a bias without knowing it so If you want to get answers that are less biased to your own position, use AI without a history of pervious interactions (like using incognito or private browsing mode) so each discussion is new and try and use neutral wording over leading questions because AI will happily move to where you're leading it. For example, "how does Col 2:16 relate to Sabbath" is a fairly neutral question, but saying "Is the Sabbath of Col 2:16 actually talking about a special festival over the weekly sabbath" is a leading question because it feeds the ideas first, then AI just expands upon them. You can even ask it "tell me how the Sabbath of Col 2:16 is ceremonial and not the same as the Sabbath of the 4th commandment, which is moral" this of course, would be intentionally biased where all you're looking for is something that agrees with you, not something that challenges you. You could also lean into the innate bias of AI and ask it the opposite of your position like "tell me how the Sabbath of the 4th commandment is ceremonial and the same context of the Sabbath in Col 2:16" then try and deconstruct the answer and challenge each point. The latter would be the most critically challenging for yourself, but probably the most rewarding.

With the above more neutral question, ChatGPT gave me a much different answer than you did, even equating the weekly Sabbath with ceremonial laws which is an opposite answer to what you got. Curiously, you've left your question out of the OP so at the very least I would include this so it doesn't appear like you're hiding it. My AI response I got was using a fresh ChatGPT conversation without any other history or prompts. Even this question can be leading because I'm forcing the AI to compare the Sabbath with Col 2:16 but I'm at least transparent with what I fed it. An even more neutral question could simply be "what does Col 2:16 mean?" But if you have to keep prompting AI to get the answer you want or be highly specific, then what AI is probably only parroting is your own bias.

RandyPNW said:

Don't you see your statement here as irrational and self-contradictory? You claim an on-going conversation between Jesus and his Disciples have nothing to do with his Disciples and instead apply to a future group of Christian who are not present or involved in the conversation. Jesus is, in fact, explaining what will happen to "these Jewish believers" who he is talking to! To say otherwise appears to be irrational to me. Sorry!

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Jewish believers = Church, there isn't a distinction of Jew/Gentile in the Church

RandyPNW said:

You're making a terrible prejudgment and error here. You've claimed I'm a Preterist without evidence that I am one. And I'm *not* a Preterist!

So, you're guilty of slandering me, and should apologize for your failed judgment. There are those who think I'm at least partly a Preterist because of my belief that Jesus spoke, in his Olivet Discourse, of things that would happen in his own generation. But it is true that Jesus did in fact speak of things to happen in his own generation, even if he also spoke of things that would continue on for many generations of Jews.

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Yes you are a "Partial Preterist" believing in 70AD fulfillment in Roman Armies

RandyPNW said:

The "Great Tribulation" Jesus spoke of was not a "gap." That is a ridiculous statement! Who ever said anything about a "gap?"

Jesus indicated in Luke 21 in the clearest possible way that Jerusalem and the Temple would fall in his own generation, which took place in 70 AD. And he said in the clearest possible way that this would be but the beginning of a long tribulation for the Jewish People, consisting of an age-long Diaspora.

It would only end, according to Jesus, at his Return. All this is explicitly stated in Luke 21, and your failure to simply read and accept the account as is amazes me. How can I argue with people who deny what their own eyes see?

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Jesus didn't speak of the temple destruction in his generation, yes you claim the great tribulation started in 70AD and will continue until the 2nd coming, you have taken a 3.5 year end time great tribulation and stretched it out over millennia filling a 2,000 year gap

RandyPNW said:

The "Tribulation" is, by self-evident definition, the loss of Israel's homeland and a wandering of the Jewish People, both by believing Jews and unbelieving Jews. Though it would be due to unbelieving Jews that this judgment would come, but all Jews, including believers, would suffer as a result.

The unfortunate thing is that Jewish believers would suffer double. Not only would they lose their own homeland, due to no fault of their own, but they would also suffer from the wickedness of unbelieving Jews who bring on this judgment. They would also suffer outside of Israel where they would be homeless among the pagan Gentiles.

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I disagree, you create two peoples of God in stating Jewish believers, the Church in Jerusalem is instructed to "Flee" Jerusalem during the Great tribulation, into the wilderness of Gilead, Bashan, Carmel

The woman in Revelation 12:6 represents the "Remnant Church" seen in Roman's chapter 11, they will be in Israel's wilderness during the 1260 day tribulation, as Jerusalem is in desolation

You will closely note Micah 7:13-18 is a detailed description of Revelation 12:6, the Remnant will be in the wilderness of Carmel, Bashan, and Gilead, they will be fed "Manna" from heaven as in the days of coming out of Egypt, the world will watch in "Fear" of the Lord's power

Revelation 12:6KJV
6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

Micah 7:13-18KJV
13 Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings.
14 Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the midst of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.
15 According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him marvellous things.
16 The nations shall see and be confounded at all their might: they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears shall be deaf.
17 They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the Lord our God, and shall fear because of thee.
18 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.

keras said:

@Douggg
Please address the OP and #14, or go elsewhere..

Your attempts to support your beliefs, fail miserably.
1/ The Jews represent only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Some from other tribes have joined Judah and become Jews too.
2/ Isaiah 66:12 proves you wrong.
3/ Consistently wrong, -as Ezekiel 37:19-27, remains unfulfilled.

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The modern day nation of Israel is not the individual southern kingdom of Judah. Do a google search a map of the northern kingdom and southern kingdom. It is easy to see that modern day Israel is not the individual southern kingdom of Judah.