Just a quick word about Hanukkah, which is coming soon. As Israel approaches its October 27 election, I find myself thinking about dedication: what we preserve, what we defend, and what we must allow Elohim to change within us. We need wise leadership and security, and we also need honest hearts. We need a pure heart before Elohim.
An Ancient Menorah Image from Beersheba
A remarkable discovery near Beersheba connects us with Jewish life roughly 2,000 years ago. Announced in April 2019, an oil lamp fragment bears an image of a nine-branched menorah. The settlement dates from the first century CE through 135 CE. Excavators Dr. Peter Fabian and Dr. Daniel Varga described the image, in the Israel Antiquities Authority announcement, as “probably one of the earliest artistic depictions of a nine-branched menorah yet discovered.”
Precision matters. Archaeologists found a picture on an ordinary oil lamp, not a surviving nine-branched candleholder. Archaeologist Shira Bloch cautioned that the evidence does not establish its use as a Hanukkah symbol. Nine-branched imagery is ancient; clearly identifiable Hanukkah lamps and depictions incorporating a ninth light are documented in the medieval period. The Beersheba discovery belongs among the earliest known depictions, rather than a securely established “first ever.”
Hanukkah remembers the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the preservation of Jewish worship under persecution. Its familiar lights invite us to consider what dedication requires today. For believers in Yeshua the Messiah, this season also recalls His presence in Jerusalem during the Feast of Dedication, recorded in John 10:22–23, יוחנן י׳:כ״ב–כ״ג. Every Kehilah praying for Israel should care about both historical truth and the lives of the people living here.
Caring for the Generations Ahead
Preserving a people also means caring for the generations ahead. Eurostat reports that the EU’s fertility rate was 1.34 children per woman in 2024, below the approximately 2.1 replacement level needed for long term population stability without migration. In 2025, approximately 3.46 million births and 4.81 million deaths produced a natural decrease of 1.35 million. Net migration nevertheless brought the population to about 452 million on January 1, 2026.
Smaller younger generations and population aging can leave fewer workers supporting pensions, healthcare and elderly care. These are substantial economic and social challenges. They remind us to think beyond the next election: supporting families, preparing young people for responsibility and ensuring that older people can live with dignity.
The Questions Before Israel’s Voters
Israel’s October 27, 2026, election brings together questions of leadership, military service, religion, security and daily life.
People within every community hold differing views. We cannot understand this election by treating any community as though it speaks with one voice.
Netanyahu’s supporters and opponents disagree about whether his leadership should continue. Yet agreement about replacing him does not create agreement within the opposition about policies or coalition partners. Right, center and left offer differing approaches to security, territory, government power and civil rights. These arguments concern both who governs and how governing should work.
Secular, traditional, religious Zionist and Haredi Israelis bring different expectations about the country’s public character. Haredi military service raises difficult questions about compulsory enlistment, exemptions for Torah study and shared obligations. Serving families carry the consequences through repeated absences, disrupted employment and fear for loved ones. Resentment over unequal contributions, exemptions and public funding needs a serious response.
Religion and state remain intertwined in debates about how much religious authority should shape public institutions and everyday choices. Israelis disagree about how Jewish and democratic commitments should operate together, and how power should be divided among courts, ministers and the Knesset. Beneath these disputes lies a question of trust: do independent institutions provide essential oversight, or do they obstruct elected leadership?
Accountability, Security and Daily Life
October 7 accountability requires identifying responsibility for the failures and deciding what investigation can credibly examine them. Military achievements must be translated into lasting security arrangements. Negotiations with Palestinians divide those who see a realistic opportunity from those who see unacceptable risks. These questions deserve clear objectives and honest assessments of consequences.
Relations between Jewish and Arab citizens inside Israel involve belonging, equality, security and mutual trust. Whether Arab parties should join or support a governing coalition remains contentious. Public safety priorities also differ: national security weighs heavily for many Jewish voters, while violent crime within Arab communities is especially urgent for many Arab voters.
High prices, household pressures and government spending shape economic disagreements. Gaps in wealth and opportunity persist between communities. Tensions between Mizrahi and Ashkenazi Israelis include historical grievances over representation, status and discrimination, although ancestry never determines everyone’s vote. Finally, political deadlock raises the choice between compromise through a unity government, a minority government, or another election. Each issue concerns real people whose lives continue after campaign slogans disappear.
Remembering Two Fallen IDF Soldiers
Our hearts are broken by the loss of two more precious IDF soldiers on October 23 at Yehuda Junction near Hebron. Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman, סמ״ר רון יונתן רויטמן, was 23, from Ashkelon, and a squad commander in the Ari Battalion, 775, of the Rescue Brigade. Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem, סמל יובל שי סוילם, was 20, from Hod HaSharon, and a fighter in the same battalion.
Two young Jewish lives. Two shattered families. We honor their service and the lives they helped protect. May their memories forever be a blessing. יהי זכרם ברוך.
Enough. How many more sons must fall? Israel must defeat jihadist terrorist organizations and prevent them from rebuilding their ability to murder. We must stop treating terror as an unavoidable condition of Jewish life. I support decisive action against perpetrators and those proven to finance, recruit for or materially assist terrorism, including deportation where lawful and justified through individual proceedings. Invoking 1,400 years of history cannot establish responsibility for today’s crimes; responsibility must rest on evidence and conduct. No single measure can honestly be promised as the only way to end terrorism. We should speak, share and demand a strategy that protects life and delivers lasting security.
Fasting and Praying for a Pure Heart
As we fast and pray for Israel’s elections, let us also ask Elohim to examine our own hearts. We have a physical body that others can see, and an inner life of thoughts, desires, conscience and relationship with Him. Scripture speaks of soul, spirit and heart in describing this life. A prayer for a pure heart asks that our motives and choices become right before Elohim.
Fasting brings physical action into spiritual prayer. Hunger can remind us to pause, humble ourselves and turn our attention toward Him. Our election fast is distinct from Hanukkah itself, which Jewish tradition treats as a festival of celebration rather than fasting. We seek wisdom, integrity and courage in leaders, and a sincere commitment to protecting life and serving the people. We also seek citizens who disagree without hatred, recognize one another’s dignity and accept responsibility for our shared future.
What Scripture Says About a Pure Heart
David’s prayer in Psalm 51 gives us words for this work: “Create in me a pure heart, O Elohim, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10 in many English Bibles corresponds to Psalm 51:12 in Hebrew numbering.
״לֵב טָהוֹר בְּרָא־לִי אֱלֹהִים; וְרוּחַ נָכוֹן חַדֵּשׁ בְּקִרְבִּי״ | תהלים נ״א:י״ב.
Yeshua teaches, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Matthew 12:34, מתי י״ב:ל״ד. Luke 6:45, לוקס ו׳:מ״ה, likewise connects our speech with what fills the heart.
״כִּי מִתּוֹךְ הַשֶּׁפַע שֶׁבַּלֵּב מְדַבֵּר הַפֶּה״ | מתי י״ב:ל״ד; השוו לוקס ו׳:מ״ה.
The unseen condition of our character becomes audible through our words. A political disagreement can expose pride, fear or bitterness we have avoided acknowledging. Before forwarding a claim or condemning another person, we can ask whether our words reflect truth, wisdom and compassion.
Jeremiah and the Hidden Condition of the Heart
Jeremiah gives a sobering diagnosis: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can know it?” Jeremiah 17:9, ירמיהו י״ז:ט׳.
״עָקֹב הַלֵּב מִכֹּל וְאָנֻשׁ הוּא; מִי יֵדָעֶנּוּ״.
The Hebrew אָנֻשׁ describes severe sickness or injury, as in מצבו אנוש, “his condition is critical.” The NKJV renders it “desperately wicked,” while the Hebrew image also emphasizes profound sickness. Rashi explains “לשון חולי,” language of illness; Radak writes “עניין כאב ושבר,” pain and brokenness. Here physical illness becomes an image for the heart’s moral and spiritual condition.
The next verse answers the question of who truly knows us: “I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind.” Jeremiah 17:10, ירמיהו י״ז:י׳.
״אֲנִי יְהוָה חֹקֵר לֵב בֹּחֵן כְּלָיוֹת״.
Elohim sees beneath outward actions and examines motives we struggle to recognize ourselves. That truth should make us teachable, including when we feel entirely justified.
David tells Solomon to serve wholeheartedly and willingly because “the LORD searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts.” 1 Chronicles 28:9, דברי הימים א׳ כ״ח:ט׳.
״כִּי כָל־לְבָבוֹת דּוֹרֵשׁ יְהוָה וְכָל־יֵצֶר מַחֲשָׁבוֹת מֵבִין״.
Proverbs warns that self confidence can conceal self deception: “All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the spirits.” Proverbs 16:2, משלי ט״ז:ב׳. Feeling right does not prove that our motives are pure.
״כָּל־דַּרְכֵי־אִישׁ זַךְ בְּעֵינָיו; וְתֹכֵן רוּחוֹת יְהוָה״.
Elohim Looks at the Heart
When Samuel was sent to anoint Israel’s next king, he learned to look beyond impressive appearances: “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7, שמואל א׳ ט״ז:ז׳. Leadership requires character that survives scrutiny.
״כִּי הָאָדָם יִרְאֶה לַעֵינַיִם וַיהוָה יִרְאֶה לַלֵּבָב״.
Hebrews describes the word of Elohim as “a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12, עברים ד׳:י״ב. Its language about dividing soul and spirit emphasizes how deeply His word reaches into us, beyond the explanations we offer others.
״דְּבַר אֱלֹהִים … בּוֹחֵן אֶת מַחְשְׁבוֹת הַלֵּב וְכַוָּנוֹתָיו״ | עברים ד׳:י״ב.
Finally, Psalm 139:23–24, תהלים קל״ט:כ״ג–כ״ד, invites examination: “Search me, O Elohim, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.” The next verse asks Him to reveal any harmful way and lead us in His everlasting way.
״חָקְרֵנִי אֵל וְדַע לְבָבִי; בְּחָנֵנִי וְדַע שַׂרְעַפָּי. וּרְאֵה אִם־דֶּרֶךְ־עֹצֶב בִּי; וּנְחֵנִי בְּדֶרֶךְ עוֹלָם״.
A Prayer for a Pure Heart This Hanukkah
Let every believer and every Kehilah praying for Israel begin here: “Elohim, help me listen. Examine my motives. Reveal pride, bitterness and selfishness within me. Heal what is wounded and correct what is wrong. Give me wisdom in my decisions and kindness in my words. Create in me a pure heart. Comfort our bereaved families, protect those defending life, and guide Israel’s leaders. Let my words and actions reflect truth, humility and love.”
As Hanukkah approaches, may our dedication become visible in how we defend life, carry responsibility and care for one another. Let it begin with the heart we place before Elohim today, asking Him for a pure heart.
Continue reading: Israel Election Day: A Hopeful Future for Our Children and The Condition of Your Heart. Find more teachings on our Resources page.
