Twin Nations Of Prophetic Destiny - Continued Series

America and Israel: Spiritually Connected

Part 3 – Twin Nations of Prophetic Destiny - continued

Today we are going to continue our study entitled America and Israel: Spiritually Connected. The last two weeks we’ve looked at the question “Is America Found in Bible Prophecy?” And as I’ve told you, if you are looking for a direct reference in the textual writing of the Bible, then the answer to this question is NO. There are many theories out there that place America in Bible verses that discuss end-times prophecy and some of them are very compelling. But none of them can be accepted with complete assuredness that they are referring to the United States of America.

Then I told you where I believe America’s prophetic destiny can be found. I personally believe we can find out a lot about our country and where we may be headed by studying the ancient nation of Israel. Because America and Israel are two nations that are incredibly linked in many ways, as we started to see last week. Today we are going to continue to look at the parallels that can be found between America and Israel.

Just as a brief review, last week I showed you some of the unique connections that can be found in the history and the founding of these two prophetic nations. And then we looked at the prophetic picture of the Tabernacle and its furniture and how it correlated with the map of the United States. Today we are going to look at some more unique historical connections between America and Israel as well as exploring two more pictures of Hebrew patterns that can be found on our Eastern Coast and in our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C. (So get ready for a history lesson like you’ve never had before.)

I. America’s Foundation

First, we’re going to look at the founding of our nation.

A. Christopher Columbus

The Almighty God raised up America following some of the same spiritual patterns as He used with His chosen nation, Israel. Our earliest history is often traced to Christopher Columbus and his famous journey to the Indies, which ended up as a journey of prophetic destiny.

Many of us know the basic story of Christopher Columbus sailing west in order to find the East Indies and instead discovering an entire new continent. But did you know that many researchers now believe that Columbus was a Jew, his parents Italian Jewish refugees living in Spain? The name, Columbus, came from the name Colon, a commonly used name among Jews living in Spain.

Several interesting aspects of this man’s life lend to the possibility of a strong Jewish link, either in his ethnic background or in his religious belief. In 1492, Columbus spoke of the Jewish Temple in the time of Christ as being the Second House, a term used among the Jews of his day. He also dated the destruction of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem at 68 AD instead of in 70 AD, which was a Jewish belief of his day.

As Columbus set out to make his journey, he wrote some very interesting things in his diary. (I have placed this quote in your handouts. He wrote, “It was the Lord who put it into my mind, (I could feel His hand upon me), the fact that it would be possible to sail from here to the Indies. All who heard of my project rejected it with laughter, ridiculing me. There is no question that the inspiration was from the Holy Spirit, because He comforted me with rays of marvelous inspiration from the Holy Scriptures. I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics or maps. It is simply the fulfillment of what Isaiah had prophesied (from The Diary of Christopher Columbus).”

Even the dates that Columbus set sail and spotted land are Hebraic links between Israel and America. Columbus set sail on the 9th of Av on the Hebrew calendar. This was a day of fasting for all Jews to commemorate the destruction of the Temple. It is considered the worst day of the year, throughout Jewish history. Columbus actually delayed his departure date for one day so that they could set sail on this specific date.

After 70 days on the sea however, he realized that a mutiny was about to occur. On the 71st day, they spotted land. That day on the Jewish calendar was the last day of the Jewish feast of Tabernacles. On this day a special prayer is prayed, remembering how God directed Israel across the sea and saved them from destruction. And on this day God directed Columbus safely across the sea, saved his ships, stopped the mutiny, and provided the climax for the journey.

B. Promised Land

Another Hebraic link found in our early history is that fact that when the Puritans crossed the Atlantic Ocean to find a new land where they could practice religious freedom, they believed that God was leading them to their own Promised Land just as He had lead the Israelites centuries before. One of the Founders of America even suggested that our national seal should depict Israel crossing the Red Sea and Pharaoh being drowned in the waters.