Released from Prison

the stories behind the headlines in the Middle East. First, though, Passover is soon upon us, and one of the traditional Passover questions is what makes this night different from all others? Passover just an important biblical holiday that has great meaning for both Jewish people and believers in Jesus. So this is a really important question to ask. It is John.

In fact, if people want to learn more about what makes Passover so special, our friends at Life and Messiah are offering to email a free copy of their Messianic Passover Haggadah. This booklet will lead you through the celebration of Passover to see the rich connections to Jesus, our Messiah, and the Last Supper. You'll also receive a link for an interactive Passover Seder video with the Haggadah and video. You can celebrate Passover this year with your family and friends.

Now to get this free offer, just go to Life in Messiah org and click on the Moody Radio button to find out more and request your copy. That's life in messiah.org. And now a look at current events. Ramadan is half over and the situation in Jerusalem has remained relatively quiet, as has the situation in Gaza. Does this suggest a period of quiet is starting to take hold, or has this simply been the calm before the storm? Well,

the situation with Ramadan it's just still tense. There have been several attempted disturbances that have been handled by security forces. It's interesting that Ramadan this year coincides with Purim, which is this weekend, and that's another past time of national

threat and victory for the Jewish people. Now Hamas is encouraging the Palestinians to cause problems, and Israel won't breathe easier until Ramadan ends on April 9th, Israel continues to threaten to enter Rafah, which is the final Hamas stronghold in Gaza. But that could be several weeks off if it's going to happen. And certainly the US and the West are pressuring Israel not to attack the situation on the border with Lebanon. Well, that remains tense as well.

Both Israel and Hezbollah threatened to escalate the conflict, but at least so far, each has refrained from launching an all out attack. Iran is apparently concerned about being drawn into the conflict, and the head of Hezbollah assured Iran that they can fight Israel alone if war breaks out. Now, that's a hollow promise. If war between Israel and Hezbollah breaks out, Israel will try to destroy Hezbollah's military capability. Will Iran stay on the sidelines and allow that to happen?

Or even more significantly, would Israel or the United States use a war with Hezbollah as an excuse to strike Iran's nuclear facilities? Well, that's Iran's fear. In spite of any promises made by Hezbollah. There's also talk of a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that would result in the release of up to 40 more hostages in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. However, until any kind of a deal is finalized and actually set

in motion, nothing is certain in that regard. Well, the world has been so focused on events in the Middle East that it has spent less time focusing on Russia. What have we been missing not only in the war with Ukraine, but in Russia's other activities? Yeah. You know, you stop and look at what's been happening. Russia's war with Ukraine has now entered its third year based on

the best available information. Russia has suffered 315,000 casualties that would be dead and wounded, while Ukraine has experienced the death of about 30,000 soldiers, along with an additional 30,000 civilian casualties, both dead and wounded. Russia has the larger population, though, and it can afford a greater number of casualties. Plus, they're using mercenaries from former Soviet republics and states that

are allied with Russia. Now, as the flow of weapons into Ukraine has been slowing, Russia might be gaining the upper hand in several key battleground areas. But beyond Ukraine, there are other significant areas that bear watching. Vladimir Putin was just reelected to another six year term in office, making him the longest serving Russian leader since Stalin. The West pictures Putin as a despot with a shaky hold on power, but he seems to have a loyal following

among most Russians who believe he's helping keep Russia strong. John, we even saw that talking to someone in Israel from Russia who had a far more positive opinion of Putin than what we get in our press now. Russia continues to expand its military presence in Libya. The Wagner Group is still in Libya, but it's been rebranded as the expeditionary corps of Russia's military intelligence agency. They're negotiating docking rights in Libya for Russian warships in exchange. For defence

systems and training for pilots. Russia is also recruiting additional mercenaries to expand their influence in other parts of Africa. Their goal is to increase their influence at the expense of the US and the West, and at least in parts of Africa. The plan does seem to be working from Moody Radio.

Israel is losing the PR war. World media has been quick to uncritically accept reports out of Gaza that later turned out to be false, but they become old news before Israel is able to verify the facts and provide a response. Now that's propaganda, but the media's constant need to feed their 24 hour news cycle plays into those hands. And it's even worse with social media. The second reason

for all the pressure right now is politics. National elections are coming up here in the US, and politicians are trying to woo younger voters who get their news from social media. Well, that political reality is causing them to pull back on supporting Israel. The third major reason for lack of a better term, I'll call it payola. Money buys influence. Our universities are awash in money from the Middle East, and as a result, students are being indoctrinated

rather than educated. And the fourth major reason for the pressure on Israel right now is just plain old anti-Semitism, antisemitic lies are being spouted by the progressive left and by the far right. So what can we do? Well, let me offer two suggestions. First, pray. Never underestimate the power of prayer. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. And second, I'll call it petition. Here's what I mean. One of your First Amendment rights allows you to petition the government

for a redress of grievances. If you believe our leaders aren't doing what they should to support Israel, then write or email the president, the vice president, your senators, your congressperson urge them to support Israel and the Jewish people during this time of struggle. Be respectful, but also be direct. Let them know you support Israel's right to exist as a nation, and that you expect them to take a strong stand against anti-Semitism. Also, let them know you vote

and that this is a key issue for you. Remember, watch out for propaganda and politics and payola and anti-Semitism, and then pray and petition your leaders to stand firm in support of Israel. Now, not everything Israel does is right. That's true for any nation. But Israel does have a right to exist as a nation, and they aren't the ones who started the current war.

were also found at the site. They had the name Simon, which probably refers to Simon Berkovitch, the leader of the revolt. Eliezer the priest is thought to be Eliezer of Modin. He was a cousin of Simon. Stories in the Mishnah and Talmud say that as long as Eliezer would pray, the capital of the rebellion couldn't be conquered. His name only appears, though, on coins issued the first year of the four year revolt, and there's no record of what

happened to Eliezer after that. The coin used ancient Hebrew script and the image of a palm tree to evoke the idea of the Kingdom of Judah coming back to life. Sadly, after the Romans put down the rebellion, many were slaughtered and the land was ethnically cleansed of Jewish people. Now, from an archaeological perspective, the coin serves as a reminder that there are still many artifacts yet to be uncovered in Israel.

here on the land and the book. Meanwhile, we point you to our website, The Land and the book. Org information about today's guests, past guests and next week's guest. It's all there at the land and the book.org a full program ahead. Don't miss any of it. On the land and the book. Marzia and Mariam were two young ladies who totally understood that they were putting their lives on the line every time they shared their faith. Living

in Iran, they knew exactly what could happen. Undaunted, in three years, they'd started two house churches and secretly given away more than 20,000 New Testaments. That's when the police finally caught up with them. Marzia zadeh is an Iranian American with a remarkable story. She's a published author, public speaker,

activist for religious freedom. For more than a decade, she has shared her inspiring story throughout the United States and around the world to bring awareness about the ongoing human rights violations and persecution of women and religious minorities in Iran. It is a great honor to welcome her back to the land and the book. Hey, thanks for being so generous with your time, Marzia.

prayed for our release. But after that, when we could see how God was using us among those prisoners to share our faith with them, we started changing our prayers. Because when we were free outside prison, we had to pray and ask God to direct us to the right person to speak. But in prison, we realized that we can talk to everyone freely. So we turned Evin Prison and the detention for 14 days to our church, and we call that Evin Prison really became our church because

we were able to share outfit with many prisoners. And we are so grateful for that opportunity, which made our interrogators very angry. And at one point I remember I had an interrogation during my interrogation. My interrogator shouted me and he said, we heard that you're talking to prisoners about your faith. You need to shut your mouth here and not to brainwash them. And I told him, I'm not going to stop talking to prisoners about my faith. And I told them, this is your fault. You arrested us,

you put us in this prison. And prisoners are curious, asking us why we are here. So we have to explain to them. And that creates more questions to them. And I could see frustration in them because they could see that they couldn't do anything else to us. We have already been in prison and we were free to talk to many prisoners, and that's why I felt more free inside prison rather than outside prison. Talking to people about my faith.

And when she came to me, I gave her the biggest fish. And when I woke up, I was in the cell with 50 other prisoners, and the Holy Spirit gave me the interpretation. And in front of all my cell mates, I told her my dream and I told her that I believe. You will be released in maximum six months. And I didn't know how and why I said that, but I believe at that time it was the Holy Spirit. And then she mocked me. She said, uh, yeah, many people told me about this. Many fortune tellers told

me that one day I will get released. But this is a lie. I have to be here for my life. But exactly. After six months, she got pardoned. And since many prisoners heard about my dream and what I told her, it was a big amuse in prison. That all prisoners. That they could see that whenever we pray for any prisoners, whenever God give me, gave me a dream about other prisoners, it come to truth. And they told us that we

see a difference in your faith. With our faith we see that as soon as you pray something a miracle happened. And that woman came to me with tears and she told me, I promise you, as soon as I get out of this prison, I try to find Jesus and find the church, to find a Bible to read. Mm.

Pope from Vatican sent a letter to the government on behalf of us. And because of all those international pressures, and of course because of God's grace, you know, today I'm alive.

without hope of ever getting released. What does your experience tell you now?

support our brothers and sisters. For example, when I was in prison, we heard from guards that we were receiving hundreds of letters every day, and they were mad at those people sending letters to us. They didn't give us those letters to read, but we could see as a result of those supports, and they started changing their behaviors with us. At least they didn't torture us physically. They didn't rape us because of those supports. They could see

that the world is watching them. And especially when a case get international attention, they try to change their behavior and to be cautious about that case. That's why I always encourage Christians that living in a free countries like America and other countries, we have a responsibility to support those who are in those countries suffering because of their faith.

There are many ways that we can support them, and those little things are matter because of all those letters come together and it made a big change for us. I always tell people, pray and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you how you can support persecuted Christians all around the world, how you can stand up for your faith. It doesn't matter what is our job, what we do.

But little things are so matter. Maybe one person, when she or he was writing a letter thinking that this is just one letter, but all those letters come together and made a big difference for us.

Which made him angry again with my answer. But honestly, some of them, they don't know they are brainwashed and they have the spirit of evil. But the day that we got out of prison, it was a combination of being happy and sad. We were happy that finally God gave us the victory and we got released. But honestly, in our hearts we were sad leaving our friends and many other women are behind and that's why we promised ourselves to be a voice for them and share their

stories with the world. That what's going on? It's not, you know, writing the first book, Captive in Iran, is not just about our story. It's the stories of many women we felt we need to share with the world to see that what's happening to Iranian women living under the harsh rules of Islamic laws.

is started in Iran since last year. And again, another girl was beaten to death because of, you know, not having a proper Islamic hijab by morality police. I myself experienced all those injustices and Iranian people are fighting for their freedoms these days to get rid of this Islamic uh, regime. They know their lies and their eyes are opened and I believe persecution help people to see the truth and to understand the lies that they were fed for many years.

And I ask people to pray for the freedom of Iranian people, for the church in Iran that is suffering, for religious minorities getting persecuted. And we have power in our prayers. And as a Christian, there are many ways that we can support Iranian people. And regarding, you know, what's happening in the world and the news these days about the war that started in Israel, we all know that the head of this evil is in Iran, and we need to support the Iranian people to stand with them,

to cut the head of this evil at home. And as long as these people are in power, they are keep torturing, keep arresting, keep killing innocent people not only in Iran but in other countries. Today, the Hamas attack in Israel, everyone knows that Islamic Republic regime supporting these terrorists to kill innocent Jews in Israel, to kill other innocent people in the Middle Eastern countries. So this is very important for us to understand that the Iranian people

are not fighting only against their own enemies. These are in our land. They infiltrated in our politics, our education system, our culture, and they are brainwashing people, giving wrong advice to our politicians that they send billions of dollars to these evil people enabling them. This is wrong. This is foolish policies toward Iran. And I ask American people to pray for our politicians because we can't continue doing that.

We can't bow down to terrorists. We need to stand up for our faith, for our values before it's too late, because what happened in Iran can happen here, too.

day's going well. This is the land in the book. I'm John Geiger with our host, doctor Charlie Dyer. And Charlie. I'm thinking Passover will soon be upon us. And one of the traditional Passover questions that always comes around is what makes this night different from all others? Passover, of course, is an important biblical holiday that has great meaning for both Jewish people and believers in Jesus. So I think that's a critical question to ask.

video with the Haggadah and video. You can celebrate Passover this year with your family and friends to get this free offer. Go to Life in Messiah org and click on the Moody Radio button to find out more and request your copy. That's life in messiah.org.

Genesis 12 and the call of Abraham. He says, I've always heard that Abraham was called from earth to the land that God was calling him to, but it seems that the call actually came after he had moved to Haran. If that's true, do we have any indication why he moved from Earth to Haran? Yeah, I think.

him to this land where you are now living. Now I don't have a problem reconciling Genesis 11 and 12 with that speech of Stephen in Acts six. Genesis 11 focuses on the genealogy of Tara and Abram, while Genesis 12 then picks up the story following Tara's death. Apparently, God originally called Abraham from ur the Chaldees, but while seeking to obey God, Abraham also honored his father by

taking him along. Now, both Ur and Haran were cities known for their worship of the moon god, and perhaps that's why Tara wanted to stop there rather than continuing on. But we do know from Joshua 24 two that Terah, it says, worshipped other gods. So wanting to stop at Haran does seem to make sense from a pagan perspective. God then repeated his call to Abram following Tara's death.

Saul's actions were quite serious. He tried to wipe out the Gibeonites with whom Joshua had made a covenant in Joshua nine. Gibeon was located only a few miles from Saul's capital of Gibeah, and it was located in land allocated to the tribe of Benjamin. Evidently, Saul and his family took it on themselves to break the covenant and wipe them out. The Gibeonites describe Saul in that second Samuel passage as the man who destroyed us and plotted against us, so that we have been decimated and have

no place anywhere in Israel. The Mosaic Law did allow for leks, Talion, as it's called, the principle of an eye for an eye, or tooth for a tooth, where retribution could match an offence. Apparently, Saul's actions brought God's judgment on the entire nation, resulting in a three year famine, and God told David it was on account of Saul and his bloodstained house. It's because he put the gibeonites to death. David's specific request of the remaining gibeonites was,

what shall I do for you? How should I make amends so that you will bless the Lord's inheritance? The action finally taken was part of God's divine judgment to remove a curse caused by Saul and his bloodstained house. And looking at all the details, I don't see it as an act of reckless vengeance, but as divine retribution against a family that had shared in the sin of Saul and his reckless and evil actions toward a group

under divine protection by a covenant guaranteed by Joshua. Though Saul was the one who led the attack against Gibeon, it apparently was supported by his family. The seven chosen represents the number of completion, so I think it's suggesting that God was judging the entire family of Saul for its actions.

And Jackie asks, why do maps and commentaries refer to the land as Palestine during the time of Jesus, when Rome didn't give that name until after the Jewish revolt in 70 A.D.? Or am I wrong? It's a huge pet peeve of mine, because it encourages people to dismiss Israel's claim to the land. Not to mention it is historically inaccurate. Your thoughts?

Since Palestine was the name given to the region by Hadrian, the people who lived there, and that's Jews, Muslims and Christians were collectively called Palestinians, what is today known as the Jerusalem Post, for example, one of Israel's premier Jewish newspapers was called the Palestine Post prior to 1948. Now, those who refer to Jesus being born in or living in Palestine are at best applying the geographical term anachronistically.

At worst, they're using the term in a political sense to try and remove Israel's historical connection to the land. But in either case, it's wrong. Since 1948, and especially since 1967, the terms Palestine and Palestinian have become political terms. And in that sense, they're used to refer to the Arabs who live in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, who are not citizens of the state of Israel. And finally, there's never been an actual ethnic group of people known

as the Palestinians. Those who call themselves that today are related ethnically to the many powers who swept through the land over the centuries, from the Arabs who swept in from the Arabian Peninsula to the Egyptians and Syrians and Turks and other ethnic groups who came through the land.

will forgive those who confess their sin. But I also believe God will judge those who deliberately reject the message of the book, denying both Christ's return and the offer of salvation he's made in light of the coming time of judgment. And yet, as long as we still have breath, it's never too late to repent and turn to God. At one last point, notice revelation 2217, the verse just before these two verses. It contains still another offer of

salvation from God. In other words, even as God points out the seriousness of rejecting what he said about the future, he still offers salvation to those willing to repent and turn to him in faith.

took place 50 days after the Passover. So we do have about a ten day gap. We know Jesus appeared to hundreds during that 40 day period, so I have no problem seeing a large number of that group here identified as about 120 remaining on in Jerusalem and gathering with the apostles in verse 15, as the day of Pentecost approached.

named Mordecai. Just who was he? Welcome back to the land and the book. And the questions I'm asking. The very ones that I suspect. Charlie, you're about to address in your devotional coming up.

For example, if I were to ask you what comes to your mind when I say Mordechai, I suspect you'd say something like, well, Esther or Purim or Haman or Persia. And my brain does get around to thinking of them. But the first thing that comes to my mind is Fiddler on the roof. Any clues? Why? Well, think of Tevye sharing his fake dream with his wife to get her to agree to the marriage of their daughter. Title

to the young tailor model comes oil, still drawing a blank. Well, in the song, Tevye says in his dream that grandma came to him from the grave singing about the wedding and part of what she said about the young tailor was a worthy boy. Is he? Mazel tov. Mazel tov of pious family. Mazel tov, Mazel tov. They named him after my dear Uncle Mordechai. There it is. The tailor model comes oil. Well, today we're not heading to Anatevka to visit with Tevye or Grandma, or even the dead

Uncle Mordechai. With the festival of Purim this weekend, we're actually on our way to the citadel of Susa in ancient Persia. And the Mordecai we're going to see is the one most of you thought of. First, the one from the Book of Esther. The royal palace rises up from the plain as a majestic monument to Darius the First and his son Xerxes. The city and palace sit on its elevated platform, whose side slope up 50ft. The entire area is surrounded by a moat that was filled

with the water of the nearby river. The entry over the moat is on the east side, where a monumental gate guards the entrance to the entire compound. The gate itself is 130ft wide and 100ft deep. Based on the scattered remains, the columns inside that supported the roof were likely 40ft high and more than three feet in diameter. The gates stood in majestic isolation, unattached to any walls extending around the complex, but the gate was more than

just mere decoration. Likely, this was an administrative center where the inner workings of the palace intersected with the city and empire at controlled. And this is where we first meet Mordecai. So what do we know about this man who plays a central role in the Book of Esther and in the feast of Purim? Well, the first thing

we learn about him is his genealogy. In Esther two verses five and six, he's introduced as a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin named Mordecai, son of year, son of Shimei, the son of Kish, who had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, among those taking captive with Jehoiakim king of Judah. Now most skip over those verses because they aren't strong on Bible chronology or genealogies. But the verses do pose a slight problem.

It sounds at first like Mordecai was carried into exile at the time of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and is still alive at the time of King Xerxes, and the problem is that Jehoiakim was taken into exile in 597 B.C., and the Book of Esther begins in the third year of King Xerxes reign, which is 483 BC. If Mordecai was a baby when he went into exile, he would now be at least 114 years old. More likely, the writer is saying he's a descendant of captives taken into Babylon.

At that time, we're not told how his family moved from Babylon to Sousa, but we are told a few other historical details. Mordecai was from the tribe of Benjamin, and he's also identified as the son or descendant of Kish. That's not a reference to his great grandfather. Kish is the father of King Saul, which puts him about 600 years before Mordecai. The writers helping flesh out Mordecai his background. He's a Benjamin who descended from the line of King Saul.

And his family ended up in captivity during the second Babylonian deportation. Just two verses later, we learned a little bit more about Mordecai. Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This girl, who was also known as Esther, was lovely and form and features, and Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.

We know nothing about Mordecai, his own family, but we learned that he had cared for an orphaned cousin with the Hebrew name Hadassah, or the Persian name Esther. Though physically they were cousins, Mordecai raised her as if he were her father. Then a few verses later, we discovered that Mordecai apparently occupied a position of authority in the Persian government. In 221, we find Mordecai sitting at the king's gate. This isn't the equivalent of sitting on a

park bench in the capital, the King's Gate. Very likely the imposing gate that stood at the entrance to the entire palace complex was also a key administrative center. Some connect Mordecai with an official named Maduka, who served as a royal accountant, and from this position of authority. Mordecai later overheard a plot to assassinate the king being hatched by two security officers. He passed the information on to

Queen Esther, who warned the king. The next detail we discover about Mordecai is his refusal to compromise his principles. In chapter three, were introduced to Haman, the son of the aggregate. Again, tiny genealogical details are important. The reference to Haman being an aggregate is intended to trace his genealogy back to Agag, the king of the Amalekites at

the time of King Saul. If Mordecai is connected to Saul, Haman is connected to Saul's archenemy Agag, and though the Persian king promoted Heyman and ordered everyone to honor him, Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. God had spoken about Agag and his descendants, and not even the king of Persia could get Mordecai to violate God's command. As the story unfolds, we discover that Haman is ready

to finish what the Amalekites and Agag had started. When the very existence of the Jewish people is threatened by royal decree. We see still another aspect of Mordecai his faith. The Book of Esther by design never mentions the name of God. It's as if the writer wants us to picture God working behind the scenes, rather than through direct miracles to accomplish his will. But even with that, Mordecai is clear in his explanation to Esther of why she

was made queen. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this? During the Jewish celebration of Purim, the Book of Esther is read aloud. When the name of Haman is mentioned, those in attendance jeer and twirl joggers or noisemakers to help drown out his name. But

when Mordecai is mentioned, the audience cheers. And rightly so, because from a human perspective, he is the hero of the book. He's the one who raised an orphan and helped her become a queen. He was the mid-level servant who risked his life to report a plot against the king, and he was the one who refused to compromise his principles of right and wrong, even when it could have

cost him his life. And he's the one who reminded a frightened queen that the unseen power behind the throne was the one who had placed her in her role. For such a time as this, Mordecai was an exceptional man whom God used to save the Jewish people. But before all that, he was simply an ordinary man who

chose to live out his faith in extraordinary ways. He chose to be a faithful man of God before an orphan grew into a young woman, before the royal beauty pageant, before overhearing the plot to assassinate the king, and before his decision not to bow the knee to evil. And that's exactly what God wants from each of us. Resolve to be a man or woman of faith, no matter how mundane the task. Be faithful and small things, and then let God control where those small things might lead.