Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed reporters as he prepared to board a flight to London Thursday morning, saying among other things that “This morning we were informed of another violation, more defiance, by Iran, this time in its striving to attain nuclear weapons. This joins Iran’s aggressive acts against international shipping and against countries in the region, as well as its efforts to carry out murderous attacks against the State of Israel, efforts that have not ceased. This is not the time to hold talks with Iran; this is the time to increase the pressure on Iran. I will discuss all of these issue, and others, with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper during my snap visit to London.”

Archeologists working under the leadership of Dr. Aren Aieir of Bar-Ilan University have uncovered  new layer of ancient Gath, the Philistine city famous for being the hometown of Goliath. The new level reveals that the ancient city was much larger and more sophisticated at an earlier stage of history than previously thought. Another team of archeologists working at the site of the Byzantine-Era “Burnt Church” in Hippos, near the shores of the Sea of Galilee, recently uncovered a previously unknown floor mosaic with colorful scenes evocative of the New Testament.

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri told CNBC in an interview broadcast this week that “Hezbollah is not a Lebanese problem — only — it is a regional problem. Israel wants to have … this scenario that Lebanon is responsible, with what Netanyahu says, and if you want to buy it, buy it. But he knows and the international community knows that this is not true.” However, he admitted that “I am a pragmatic person, and I know my limits, and I know the limits of this region. If people were serious about this issue, they would have done things 10, 15, 20, 30 years” ago.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Hebron on Wednesday, partially in an attempt to shore up his support among Right-leaning voters in upcoming elections. “Hebron will not be devoid of Jews. It will not be ‘judenrein,’” Netanyahu said, falling short of expectations some residents had had that he would announce plans to annex the Jewish neighborhoods of the city. “We hold the Israeli government responsible for the dangerous escalation which aims at dragging the area into a religious war that no one can bear its consequences,” spokesman for the Palestinian Authority Presidency Nabil Abu Rudeineh told the Palestinian news agency WAFA.

Most of Israel’s current security challenges stem from a single threat: Iran’s aspirations of hegemony over the Middle East. In particular, Iran has sought to improve and expand its arsenal of precision missiles and other standoff fire, in part to export these capabilities to armed Shia factions throughout the region. To counter such threats while maximizing the state’s ability to develop during times of quiet, Israel has endeavored to maintain what it regards as a reasonable security routine.

Recent US Department of Defense and UN reporting has shown that the Islamic State terror militia (IS) has reorganized and recovered to a significant degree in both Iraq and Syria since the final battles against its “caliphate” as well as continued its operations in other countries. Other reports indicate that IS faces serious financial constraints but is still able to fund significant operations.

The unique calling of Abraham reveals the very crux of Israel’s calling as a nation. The question today is what does this mean for the Church? What did this mean for the early Church? What did it mean for the Apostles? It’s a very important question to answer today especially in light of the Jewish people’s return to the land of Israel.