19And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:19-21
To see the thrilling fulfillment of prophecy proves that all of God’s word is true, powerful, and trustworthy. It is written so that you believe.
ETHIOPIA
Most people who are students of the bible are familiar with the great diaspora that took place after the Jews rejected their Messiah (I also addressed it in another article here). God, speaking through Prophets, goes into great detail about this event hundreds of years before it happened. The following scriptures are just a few of many about their judgment.
“The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord drives you.” Deuteronomy 4:27 (NASB)
“When I scatter them among the peoples,
They will remember Me in far countries, And they with their children will live
and come back. Zechariah 10:9
The Jews were dispersed everywhere just like God’s word prophesied. The Jewish diaspora, or exile, took them to places such as Northern and Eastern Europe, Spain and Portugal, Africa, and the Middle East. But one of the most interesting groups of Jews, whose story is not well known, but quite extraordinary, are the Jews of Ethiopia. Even secular Hollywood found their story interesting and made a movie about their return to Israel.
WHO ARE THESE JEWS?
These Jews have lived in Ethiopia for over 2000 years. Before the fourth century, roughly half of Ethiopia was Jewish. After Christianity was made the official religion of Ethiopia during the 4th century, the Jews suffered great persecution. Unfortunately, the Ethiopian Christians accused them of killing Christ, being “unworthy,” and “wicked enemies of God,” who should be exterminated. They were massacred, enslaved, and forced to convert to Christianity; nevertheless, they maintained their pre-Rabbinic and biblically-based religious identity for a thousand years.
According to the following quote from the online magazine “Cultural Survival”, there are some differences, but they largely have the same traditions of most orthodox Jews.
“They have the Torah (Written Law) but not the Talmud (Oral Law). Their language is not Hebrew, but Ge’ez. Their leaders are priests (kohanim) rather than rabbis. They have no knowledge or post-Biblical Jewish holidays such as Chanukah or Purim, or post-Biblical interpretations of the Law, e.g., the prohibition against mixing meat and milk. Until recently Ethiopian Jews practiced animal sacrifice, and ritual purification through immersion in water. Otherwise, their religion is the same as Judaism throughout the world, including observance of the Sabbath and Biblical dietary laws. They are religious Zionists – i.e., they dream of a return to Zion. They call themselves Beta Israel (House of Israel), and have wanted to live in the modern state of Israel since its establishment in 1948.”
ORIGIN
Their origin is a bit clothed in mystery, but there are a couple of theories out there. The Encyclopedia Britannica describes the origins of Ethiopian Jews in the following way; “Beta Israel, formerly called Falasha also spelled Felasha (now known to be pejorative) are Jews of Ethiopian origin. Their beginnings are obscure and possibly polygenetic. The Beta Israel themselves claim descent from Menilek I, traditionally the son of the Queen of Sheba (Makeda) and King Solomon.”
It seems that the Queen may have done more than just interview Solomon. Some bible scholars have speculated that Solomon and the Queen of Sheba were married, pointing to the Song of Solomon. “I am black but lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, Like the tents of Kedar, Like the curtains of Solomon. Song of Solomon 1:5 (NASB)According to Chabad.org, another Beta Israel origin story is explained in this way:
“Eldad the Danite (in the 9th century, Eldad was a Jewish man of dark skin who appeared in Egypt and created a stir in that Jewish community) said that the Jews of his own kingdom descended from the tribe of Dan (which included the Biblical war-hero Samson) who had fled the civil war in the Kingdom of Israel between Solomon’s son Rehoboam and Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and resettled in Egypt. From there, they moved southwards up the Nile into Ethiopia. The Beta Israel say this confirms that they are descended from these Danites. Some Beta Israel, however, assert that their Danite origins go back to the time of Moses, when some Danites parted from other Jews right after the Exodus and moved south to Ethiopia. Eldad the Danite speaks of at least three waves of Jewish immigration into his region, creating other Jewish tribes and kingdoms. The earliest wave settled in a remote kingdom of the “tribe of Moses”: this was the strongest and most secure Jewish kingdom of all, with farming villages, cities and great wealth. Other Ethiopian Jews who appeared in the Mediterranean world over the succeeding centuries and persuaded rabbinic authorities there that they were of Jewish descent, and so could if slaves be ransomed by Jewish communities, join synagogues, marry other Jews, etc, also referred to the Mosaic and Danite origins of Ethiopian Jewry. The Mosaic claims of the Beta Israel, in any case, like those of the Zagwe dynasty, are ancient.]”
The most fascinating aspect of Beta Israel is their adherence to certain Jewish traditions despite being completely isolated from the broader Jewish community; and just like their Jewish brethren, their ever longing to return to Zion marks them. This longing that all Jews feel when living away from Jerusalem is truly captured in the following Psalm.
137 By the waters of Babylon,
there we sat down and wept,
when we remembered Zion.
2 On the willows[a] there
we hung up our lyres.
3 For there our captors
required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song
in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget its skill!
6 Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
if I do not remember you,
if I do not set Jerusalem
above my highest joy!
Psalm 137:1-6 (ESV)
BETA ISRAEL AND CHRISTIANS
Some folks may be surprised to know that Ethiopia is considered to be the world’s first Christian nation. But if you read the New Testament it shouldn’t be a total surprise. The following is the beginning of the fascinating encounter that Phillip had with the first Ethiopian convert in Acts 8:26-29, 32-38 (ESV).
26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south[a] to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. 27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”
32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:
“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opens not his mouth.
33 In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken away from the earth.”
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?”[b] 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.
Crudely, we find by the 14th century Christians as well as the Muslim community didn’t think too highly of Beta Israel. According to Cultural Survival, besides accusing them of being Christ-killers–
“They also held strange superstitious beliefs towards them. They thought they turned into hyenas at night, possess young women, eat corpses or turn them into animals, prey on children, kill cattle, and turn people into donkeys to enslave them. Jews are often blamed for causing hunger, crop failure, blindness, insanity, illness, and death.”
Adding to that, Portuguese missionaries came in and threw more wood on the fire by promoting the idea that the Ethiopian Jews were evil and partook in tormenting Christians. It’s no wonder that to this day Beta Israel is very wary of strangers, and they ostracize Christian converts.
AFTER 2000 YEARS-THE LAW OF RETURN
“The State of Israel will be open to the immigration of Jews and the ingathering of exiles from all countries of their dispersion,” asserts Israel’s Declaration of Independence. The 1950 Law of Return codified this mission to gather Jews from around the world by granting them the right to settle in Israel and gain automatic citizenship.” *myjewishlearning.com
The following prophecy concerns the return of Beta Israel to Israel:
11 In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush,] from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.
12 He will raise a signal for the nations
and will assemble the banished of Israel,
and gather the dispersed of Judah
from the four corners of the earth. Isaiah 11:11-12 (ESV)
For those who are unfamiliar with Cush. According to the Amazing Bible Timeline: “The word Cush means black. Biblically, Cush is the son of Ham and father of Nimrod. He is considered the ancestor of the dark-skinned people that occupied Ethiopia. His name is often associated with Ethiopia.”
Isaiah clearly confirms God’s saving hand towards Ethiopian Jews. Why is this so important? Because it wasn’t a consensus, not all Israelites wanted them to return. They had a myriad of reasons why the Beta Jews didn’t belong in Israel. The following Wikipedia quote sheds some light on various Israeli concerns.
“In the decade leading up to the operation, there was a heated division within the Israeli community over whether to accept the Ethiopians. The reasoning against bringing in Ethiopians proved to be very diverse. Some Jews within Israel feared a “shanda fur di goyim” (embarrassment in front of the non-Jews), and thus aimed to avoid the issue of stirring up controversy by ignoring the pleas of the Ethiopian Jews.[9] Others advocated for the operation, but avoided public demonstrations that might lead to arrests and further public controversy. Taking a completely different approach, others within the Israeli community claimed that there was a cultural divide which would make the integration process untenable; these included Director General of the Jewish Agency’s Department of Immigration and Absorption Yehuda Dominitz, who likened this displacement to “taking a fish out of water”.[10] Still others elaborated on this vague notion with more provocative claims, such as World Zionist Organization writer Malkah Raymist, who argued that the Ethiopians’ “mental outlook is that of children… It would take several years before they could be educated towards a minimum of progressive thinking.”[11] However, ultimately, these counter-arguments were in vain, as the Israeli government went ahead and conducted the airlift anyway, and the jubilant Ethiopians were greeted as they exited the planes by thousands of joyous Israelis.”
It really didn’t matter that some Israelis resisted this great deliverance. WHY? Because Beta Israel’s deliverance was of God!
FROM OPERATION BROTHER TO MOSES JOSHUA SOLOMON
Moses, Joshua, and Solomon were the names of the operations that took place to airlift Beta Israel out of Ethiopia while Operation Brother, the very first operation, took place first through boats. I’ll be covering the airlifts first and then end with Operation Brother.
After Operation Brother that started in ’79, there was still a great concern for the persecution the remaining Beta Israelites were experiencing. Richard Krieger, the Associate U.S. Coordinator for Refugee Affairs, was the brainchild of the next operation called “Moses”. Before any operations took place, there were roughly 250 Ethiopian immigrants in Israel, but with the help of many agencies, including Israel Defense Forces and the C.I.A., thousands of Betas were airlifted 200 at a time to Israel. These Operation Moses airlifts took place between 1984 to 1985.
Also, there was a follow-up airlift called” Operation Joshua” that took place in 1985. That lift transported over 650 Betas.
In 1991, the governments of Ethiopia were experiencing an even greater amount of destabilization. Because their lives were in immediate danger, it was soon decided that another airlift was needed to rescue the remaining Betas. This third airlift was called “Operation Solomon”.
Through the synergy of various agencies and the fact that Ethiopia and Israel at the time were on right terms, Solomon went into motion. The team was expecting to airlift what a “747” normally carries: 760 passengers. Instead, like a crew in a storm tossing everything to lighten their ship’s load, they decided to empty the jet of all its’ chairs to make room for more Ethiopians. Because of the brutal living conditions and famines, the Ethiopians were malnourished; causing them to be very thin. Instead of 760 passengers, they were able to load 1087 (actually 1122 passengers, some children hid behind their mother’s skirts) passengers, setting world records for most passengers on a plane. Something else happened while these refugees were in their 747 flying lifeboat; five babies were born! Why is this significant? We know that the scriptures often record unique and unusual situations. For instance, more than one scripture sets apart the Jews coming from the north, and then generally from all over the world such as—“See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth…” Jer 31:8. Russia is North of Israel. So which country has the most Jews returning to Israel? You guessed it: Russia. Over a million of them.
As far as births, they couldn’t wait for expectant mothers to have their babies; they had to get on board and go. Since these babies were born 30,000 feet up, there’s no country on earth written on their birth certificate. The rest of Jeremiah 31:8 prophetically captures their unique situation.
“….Among them will be the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return.” Jer 31:8
BROTHERS BY BOAT
Before Moses, Joshua, and Solomon, there was the very first operation that required absolute top secrecy. It was named “Operation Brother”. Instead of being airlifted, the Betas were transported by way of Sudan in boats to Israel. This mission started in 1979 and ran for about 5 years, saving thousands of lives.
Between civil war, famine, infighting between different rebel groups, and economic instability, Ethiopian Jews, who were ready to go, were urged by community activists to leave the country. The 700-mile trek to Sudan through the desert was incredibly dangerous with 4000 out of 20,000 dying in rout over the years.
HOTEL
What made this story so unique is that they needed a cover in Sudan to sneak the Beta Jews to Israel. Incredibly, they found an old, Italian built, abandoned hotel off the coast of Sudan. So Israeli agents hatched a bold but delicate plan. They converted the hotel into a fake/real resort called “The Red Sea Diving Resort”. With the help of Ethiopian activists getting Beta’s to the coast and recruited Mossad agents from all over the world, Operation Brother was a go.
Sudanese International Tourist Corporation really did believe they were renting the hotel to diving enthusiasts and resort managers, not knowing that from the managers on down, they were all undercover Israeli operatives. The whole time while Jews were being saved, many vacationers came through the real operating resort oblivious to the fact that it was a front for saving lives.
Over 8000 Ethiopian Jews were transported by boat by way of the Red Sea Diving Resort. Who knew that an old abandoned hotel off the coast of Sudan would be used to help fulfill bible prophecy!
IN CONCLUSION
The privilege and joy of seeing God fulfill His prophetic word so precisely is such a gift and treasure to our faith. Although they have faced great hardships, discrimination, and many setbacks, the number of Beta Israelites in Israel are 150,000 strong. I heard someone say that God’s word is more true and accurate than tomorrow’s newspaper headlines. But I would say that His word is more true than tomorrow. Let us continue to pray for Israel, with the hope that Abraham’s lineage would receive and believe in their savior: Jesus the Christ.
The following is a short clip from the Netflix docudrama based on Operation Brother.