Is Hamas mentioned in Scripture? Joel 3:19; Obadiah 10.

When I first wrote this in 2012 with 2,901 readers, the militant arm of the Islamic Brotherhood was Hamas and they were shooting rockets all over Israel at that time. Well, Oct 7, 2023 – on the 8^th Day High day of God’s calendar, almost on the anniversary of the Yom Kippur war of 1973, Hamas is at it again: they’ve shot thousands of rockets, killed over 700 Israelis as of this writing, and taken scores of people captive, including Israeli soldiers. Israel, is once again, at war, defending the land GOD gave to Israel. We need to be concerned and praying.

In today’s blog, I can’t resist pointing out what might simply be a coincidence – or maybe not. There are many examples of “plays on words” in Scripture. To the Arab, the word “Hamas” is taken to mean someone acting bravely in the cause of Allah. In Arabic it means “zeal” and it’s an acronym in Arabic for “Islamic Armed Movement”. ‘

However, in Hebrew, there might also be an interesting play on words. In Hebrew the word “Hamas” means “violence.”  It can also be spelled “chamac” but the “ch” is like an “h” and the c at the end is like an “s”. Is it possible that we were warned thousands of years ago in Scripture that Hamas would become a violent thorn in Jacob’s (Israel’s) side? That word in Hebrew – Hamas- - is used at least 60 times, and sometimes in direct correlation to Israel. Let’s examine a few.

Joel 3:19-21

19 "Egypt shall be a desolation, And Edom [Esau’s descendants] a desolate wilderness,

Because of violence [Hebrew: hamas] against the people of Judah,

For they have shed innocent blood in their land.

20 But Judah shall abide forever, And Jerusalem from generation to generation.

21 For I will acquit them of the guilt of bloodshed, whom I had not acquitted;

For YHVH dwells in Zion."

Edom – or Esau – always felt that his twin brother Jacob had stolen what was rightfully his. He made sure his children were firmly indoctrinated from their early childhood to hate their uncle Jacob, renamed Israel. The descendants of Esau included the Amalekites, the most hateful of Israel among Esau’s descendants. I suspect the Palestinians are from the ancient line of Amalek. This hatred for Israel is as intense as ever among the descendants of Israel’s brother Esau/Edom.

Today we find his descendants in much of the Arab and Muslim populations of the middle east. It is ironic that Palestinians and Jews are really from the same overall family. Both are children of Abraham and Isaac. Esau and Jacob were brothers. Palestinians and many Arabs are really brothers or cousins to the Jew. But the bad blood between these brothers has been roiling for millennia.

And it doesn’t help that the Hebrew or Jewish word for “darkness” or “nighttime” is “erev” – which can sound very much like “Arab” when it is spoken, though it doesn’t mean “Arab”.

Next, you simply must read the one-chapter book of Obadiah. It starts out as a prophecy, a vision, concerning Esau/Edom (Obadiah 1:1). We jump ahead to verse 10, but be sure to read all of it:

Obadiah 1:10

10 "For violence (hamas) against your brother Jacob [Israel],

Shame shall cover you, and you shall be cut off forever.

Yehovah does not like it when brothers don’t support or love each other. He hates it when a brother stands back and lets things happen without doing anything to stop it. When we read the first chapter of Obadiah, it is clear that some calamities are going to hit Israel very, very hard and the Jews’ Arab brothers are going to do nothing to stop the cataclysm. For their inaction, Yehovah will strike them very, very hard.

If any of my readers are Jews or Arab, please my brothers: in our Messiah we can come out of the ways of this world. Those of us led by the Holy Spirit can become friends, be brothers and sisters in Messiah, be heirs of the promises given to Abraham through Christ – whether you are Jew or Arab. But first, we each have to come to Him and surrender our lives to Him. Only then can we be one. John 17:20-23 tells us how we become one: IN and THROUGH our Savior, who also happens to be our Creator. Jesus – Yeshua – was the God-being who spoke the words “Let there be light” and HE was the one who created man out of the dust and then built a woman from Adam’s side.

Right now as I write this October 7, 2023 AND as well on Nov 16, 2012, Hamas is firing thousands of rockets indiscriminately into Israel. These are not aimed at military targets, nor are they precision strikes but much improved from before. The rockets could kill Jew or Arab, the aged woman or a baby, man or woman. Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense has kept most of the rockets from landing. It’s like firing a bullet to stop a bullet that has already been fired at you. It is amazing technology but not foolproof. The rockets are landing even around Tel Aviv at this point.

Israel is about the size of New Jersey. Imagine if thousands of rockets every day were being fired from Mexico and hitting Dallas or around Dallas. How would we react? So Israel is striking hundreds of military targets in Gaza, many of which are around population centers, so innocent civilians are also being killed. It’s a terrible scene all around. We must be fervently praying “thy kingdom come” as never before. Let’s also pray for Jerusalem and for Israel. I also pray that our God Most High, our Father, will be merciful on all people -- Arab, Palestinian or Jew-- especially when people turn and come to Him in repentant surrender of their lives.

The Word Study Dictionary of the Old Testament has this to say about Strong’s word # 2555 – Hamas:

“A masculine noun meaning violence, wrong. It implies cruelty, damage, and injustice…..In relation to physical violence, cruelty is implied (Judges 9:24). When coupled with the term instrument or weapon, it becomes an attributive noun describing weapons or instruments of violence (Psalms 58:2 (or verse 3 in Jewish scriptures). When it describes a person, it can mean an oppressor or a violent man (Proverbs 3:31).”

I suggest you read the one chapter of the book of Obadiah, which is a prophecy against the descendants of Edom. Edom was another name for Esau. I suspect many of the Palestinians are descendants of Edom and even Amalek, Esau’s/Edom’s grandson from a concubine.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem and for the return of our King Jesus!