Bill Calling for Non-Muslim Prayer on the Temple Mount Brings Prophetic Vision One Step Closer
“And many nations shall go, and they shall say, ‘Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mount and to the house of the God of Jacob, and let Him teach us of His ways, and we will go in His paths,’ for out of Zion shall the Torah come forth, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Micah 4:2, The Israel Bible)
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(Photo: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
The Third Holy Temple is at the core of the Jewish view of the End of Days. A new bill was recently proposed by member of Knesset Bezalal Smotrich that, if passed, would allow Jews and Christians to pray on the Temple Mount. This would bring Israel and the nations one step closer to the fulfillment of the prophet Micah’s vision that the non-Jewish nations of the world will ascend the Temple Mount and will learn from God how to go in His ways.
The Knesset bill frames the quest for non-Muslim prayer on the Temple Mount in terms of politics. A note added onto the bill explains that “freedom of worship and freedom of access of all religions to the holy places is a basic right in a democracy.”
However, the prophet Micah has a more comprehensive vision for the Temple Mount at the End of Days. As explained in the Book of Micah, he does not just see Jews and Christians being able to pray in the shadow of the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa mosque. He sees the restoration of the Temple “firmly established” on the mountaintop and the Temple serving as a spiritual magnet, attracting people from many nations.
“And it shall be at the end of the days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be firmly established at the top of the mountains, and it shall be raised above the hills, and peoples shall stream upon it.” (Micah 4:1)
Micah’s vision is the Temple Mount, restored to full Jewish sovereignty and housing the third and final Jewish Holy Temple. According to Micah, the Temple will serve as the source for God’s wisdom to radiate out over all the nations. This vision matches a prophecy from Zechariah, who envisioned a time when it will be universally recognized that Jews are a source of God’s wisdom.
“So said the Lord of Hosts: In those days, when ten men of all the languages of the nations shall take hold of the skirt of a Jewish man, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’” Zechariah 8:23
Speaking to Breaking Israel News, Rabbi Michael Skobac, Director of Education and Counseling of Jews for Judaism in Canada, highlighted the special mission of the Jewish people to “teach the world.” However, Skobac is careful to caution, “The prophet Isaiah referred to us as God’s servant and witnesses and as a light to the nations. However, God never directed us to shine our light into anyone’s eyes. We serve as a light by being obedient to follow God’s Torah and model the Godliness that it teaches.”
Skobac spoke further about “the blissful messianic redemption portrayed in passages like Micah 4,” and the change that will have to occur before the Jewish people can step into their God-given role.
“During the redemption, the very people who vilified us will be seeking our wisdom and guidance,” he explained to Breaking Israel News. “We will finally actualize the mission that God has had for us – to be His teaching nation. At that time, all of humanity will come to know God and He will be One and His Name One.”
If Smotrich’s bill passes in the Knesset, and people of all religious faiths are permitted to pray on the Temple Mount, the messianic vision as prophesied by Micah will be one step closer to fulfillment.
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