This is a requirement of the law that the LORD has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke. – Numbers 19:2

Today's Scripture Reading (January 29, 2025): Numbers 19

On October 7, 2023, Hamas and several other militant groups launched what appeared to be an unprovoked, coordinated, armed incursion into an area known as the Gaza Envelope of Israel. What has caused such anger among many supporters of Israel is that it wasn't an attack of an armed military against military targets. The attack was against an unarmed population, made up of many age groups, but included children, teens, and seniors. Most of the victims of the attack didn't have any weapons, so they didn't have a chance to defend themselves. They were killed outright, injured and died later, raped, and taken prisoner. Since the day of the attack, many of the prisoners have died who survived the initial attack, while some have simply been lost in the process. They might be alive, but no one seems to know exactly where they might be. 

When Hamas was challenged about the reasons for the attack, they tried to establish the foundation for the one-sided military operation. One of the weird reasons why Hamas and their associate groups felt that the time had come for an attack on Israel was that Israel had been importing Red Angus cows from Texas. Apparently, that action is not as innocent as it might seem. There has been a strict ban on the export of U.S. cattle to Israel. But that didn't stop the importers of these cattle. The Texan Red Angus cattle were imported into Israel as pets. Yep, some people want a cute puppy, while others desire an adorable cow. Have you ever stared into a Red Angus cow's beautiful, deep brown eyes?

Why did the presence of red cows in Israel create such an affront to Hamas? The secret is found in the "Red Heifer" passages of the Bible. The belief is that the Temple Mount must be cleansed before the Temple can be rebuilt. Temple Mount, where Solomon's and Herod's Temple once stood, is an essential place for spiritual pilgrimage in Islam. Today, this hill in Jerusalem is the home of both "The Dome of the Rock," an Islamic Shrine and the oldest existing example of Islamic architecture, as well as the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the second oldest mosque in the Islamic world. All of this results in the Temple Mount being incredibly important to both Islam and Judaism and, by extension, to Christians as well.

The enemies of Israel fear that the gathering of the Red Heifers is the beginning of a concerted Jewish effort to take Temple Mount back, which would mean the destruction of the Islamic shrines located on the holy hill. The cleansing of the Mountain would necessarily involve the sacrifice of a Red Heifer to cleanse the sacred hill, all accomplished according to the instructions left for us in the biblical record. The requirements are that the heifer must be totally red, have no black hair, never have been put to work in the field, and never have given birth to a calf. Whether Israel is planning now to cleanse the Mount or making sure that they have the capability of cleaning the Mount if the opportunity arises sometime in the future, only religious groups in Israel can know for sure.   

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Numbers 20