Not many people know that Abraham - the father of the nation whose sons and daughters we are by adoption through emunah (faith) in Messiah in consequence of which, "those who have emunah (faith) are blessed along with Abraham, the man of emunah (faith)" (Gal.3:9, NIV) - was also the king, chieftain or lord of Damascus, the modern captial of Syria and ancient capital of Aram, the ancient language of which (Aramean) was spoken by Yah'shua (Jesus) and His talmidim (disciples).

Nicolaus of Damascus (then a Christian city), born in 64 AD, wrote in Volume 4 of his 144-volume epic, Universal History, the following:

"Abram was king of Damascus, and came hither as a stranger, with an army (multitude), from that part of the country which is situated above Babylon of the Chaldeans. But after a short time he again emigrated from this region with his people, and transferred his dwelling to the land which was at that time called Canaaea (Canaan), but is now called Judea; together with all the multitude which had increased with him, of whose history I shall give an account in another book. The name of Abram is well known even to this day in Damascus, and a village is pointed out which is still called the House of Abraham" [1].

The third century Babylonian historian, Berosus, writing in the third century BC, said:

"...moreover..there lived...a man named Abraham, a man of noble race and superior to all others in wisdom. Of him, they relate...that on account of his piety, he was esteemed of God. It is further said that under the directions of God , he removed and lived in Phoenicia (of which Canaan was a part at that time - ed.), and there taught the Phoenicians the motions of the sun and moon and all other things, for which thing he was held in great reverence by their king" [2].

Both because Abraham was its lord and because it was a major Christian centre for centuries before the Moslem invasion, Damascus is a place of importance. Though Genesis says nothing of Abraham (or Abram as he was then still) being the king of Damascus, we do read that righteous Eliezer, his chief servant and beneficiary of his inheritance prior to the birth of Isaac, was from Damascus (Gen.15:2).

Centuries later, Solomon established control of the city in his day but it was lost to Israel in the days of Rezon (1 Ki.11:23-25) which marked its rise as an independent sovereign political entity. For a period Damascus (Aram) became a serious political rival to the northern Kingdom of Israel and by the mid 9th century it became the most powerful state in Syria-Palestine.

Damascus is one of the oldest, continuously inhabited cities of the Middle East, and is famed for its beauty. And though it has had its dark side of history, I believe it is beloved of Yahweh because of Abraham, it's one-time king, and because of its rich Christian history before the Moslem dark ages. It is my conviction that Damascus is an important city, that we should pray for it, a place linked to Northern Israel, not Judah. More importantly still, Christians and Messianics have got to stop getting onboard with the satanic, zionist cabal agenda beating their war drums and crying for the destruction of Damascus in order, supposedly, to 'fulfil Bible prophecy' in Isaiah 17:1. I expose the lie of this claim in Trump, Prophecy & Damascus, showing that this prophecy was fulfilled in 732 BC when it was destroyed by its northern Assyrian neighbour!

This ungodly, satanic lust for the destruction of places like Damascus that has infected Jewish, Christian and Messianic Zionists has got to be replaced with a spirit of intercession and redemption. Instead, these people have got to get in alignment with the Davar Elohim (Word of God) and both recognise that "the remnant of Aram will be like the glory of the Israelites" (Isa.17:3, NIV). Do you understand? THE REMNANT OF ARAM (DAMASCUS) WILL HAVE A SIMILAR GLORY TO THE REMNANT OF ISRAEL! There are many godly people in modern-day Syria - why do you suppose it is such a battle-ground now?

That does not mean there is not much wickedness in Syria, or that there wasn't anciently, for there is and there was (as numerous prophecies attest, as in Amos 1). But what is important to make believers aware of is the fact that scripture without a context is a pretext for misinterpretation and abuse. Now I could be wrong and Damascus could be nuked - however, such an event would never take place without Yahweh's permission. There is a separation going on there now, as everywhere else, as has happened in the past. Our interest is in all the parts of the remnant or every nation who believe in Messiah wherever they may come from and it is my witness that there is a righteous remnant in Damascus and Syria. We must not cease importuning heaven until they are all gathered to wherever they are supposed to be right now until the trumpet sounds for the Final Gathering.

Endnotes

[1] [2] Charles Horne, Fragments of the Babylonian Historian Berosus 300 BCextracted from Sacred Books and Early Literature of the East (Kessinger Publishing), p.26

Comments from Readers

[1] You're the first Messianics (or believers of any sort really) that I've seen talking about this. I only just discovered this the other day when reading Josephus (who quotes the historians you mention), and came across your article while trying to see if anyone else had taken serious notice. Thanks a lot" (JMS, Australia, 9 June 2018)