June 2024 Personal Letter

FROM SARAH, OUR SABRA
ON THE GROUND IN ISRAEL

Dear Friend,

Greetings from the Holy Land. Israelis waited six long months to find the answer to a lingering mystery — how one empty military tank saved over 60 people at the Supernova music festival on October 7. There were many accounts of heroism amidst the anguish, pain, abuse, and torture that occurred on that day. While all those stories deserve to be told, this one stood out to me.

At 6:30 a.m., participants of the outdoor event knew that their lives were in danger as countless rockets flew overhead. They saw terrorists parachuting into Israel and landing nearby but were unaware that hundreds of Hamas militants (and even civilians from Gaza) had breached the border fence and were rolling into Israel in pickup trucks, armed to the nines. As bullets flew around them, attendees ran in every direction through the open fields, only to find themselves surrounded. Over 300 people eventually died from gunshot wounds.

Seeking Shelter

Though people tried to hide among nearby trees and bushes, terrorists fired rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) into the trees to burn them alive and stop those fleeing the fires. Many sought shelter in or behind vehicles, only to face a similar fate. Others begged for their lives, but Hamas butchers tortured, raped, maimed, and killed indiscriminately. The massacre continued for hours.

Suddenly, a single tank from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) appeared on the edge of the killing field. It moved toward some terrorists and ran them over. After the tank’s engine stalled, it rolled to a stop. Several Israeli civilians ran toward the tank, seeking shelter behind it.

Someone opened the tank’s hatch and found it empty — completely burned inside. Though it didn’t appear that anyone could have survived, one crew member did. The story of Ido Somech, the tank driver, is nothing less than a miracle.

Overwhelmed by Terrorists

Ido was one of a few soldiers and tanks stationed at outposts near the Gaza border. On October 7, around 3,000 terrorists took those outposts by surprise and vastly outnumbered the IDF soldiers.

After the first sirens sounded around 6:30 a.m., Ido and his crew got orders to move their tank toward the fence. Shai Levinson, the commander, stood exposed in the open hatch as he yelled navigation and firing orders to his three-man-crew below. They reached the breached fence at 6:40 a.m., only to find unimaginable numbers of terrorists on motorcycles entering Israel. The tank crew fought, firing as many rounds as possible, and killed numerous terrorists.

Over 40 yards away, one terrorist aimed his RPG at the tank. He was too close to fire on, so Ido spun the tank around and tried to crush him. It was literally a matter of who could strike first — the tank or the terrorist. After Ido ran over him, more terrorists surrounded and fired on the tank. Shai and his crew fought valiantly, but the tank took a direct hit at 6:56 a.m.

The massive blast rocked the tank. Ido was sitting in the driver’s cabin, the most protected part of the tank. He turned around and saw the tank filled with smoke and a massive fire bellowing up the hatch. As he drove, he radioed that his other team members were dead. The base commander told him to wait there because a rescue team was en route.

Keep Moving

Ido decided against remaining stationary like a sitting duck. Without navigation, he drove aimlessly through the fields. Suddenly, he heard a voice — another crew member, Ofir Testa, was on the top of the tank, badly injured. Their commander, Shai, was no longer in the tank. Ariel Eliyahu, the fourth member, was still alive but critically injured and unresponsive.

At 7:23 a.m., Ido again radioed for help. He did not know which direction to go. The base was so overwhelmed that no one responded to his radio call. Amazingly, Ofir provided navigation for Ido, telling him to drive toward the sun. This would keep them going east, away from Gaza. Soon, they encountered an IDF jeep, which they hoped would provide help. Ofir stood up but quickly retreated, yelling to Ido to drive away because terrorists were in the jeep. Ido ran over one of them and then over the jeep so that no one could pursue them.

At that point, Ido used his cellphone to call a medic friend, who directed him to the IDF base at Re’im, near the site of the Supernova festival. As Ido drove, the tank nearly overturned several times because of the terrain.

Helping Civilians

At 8:20 a.m., as the tank approached Re’im, Ido saw what appeared to be a park with families camping. The tank crew (like many other IDF personnel) didn’t know about this massive party or that thousands of people were trying to hide from the Hamas butchers.

Mai and Daniel, who had attended the festival, were hiding in their car as terrorists approached. The terrorists climbed onto the hood with their guns aimed at Mai and Daniel. At 8:21 a.m., however, the armed men jumped down and ran when they heard an approaching tank. Mai and Daniel were spared.

Ido found several police officers with handguns engaged in a firefight with a larger number of terrorists who had machine guns and RPGs. Attempting to shield the officers, Ido positioned the tank (and himself) between them and the terrorists.

Ofir, the only other crew member still alive, suddenly got out of the tank. Though badly injured, Ofir went to fight the terrorists who were shooting at people hiding in vehicles. Within minutes, he was killed, but just before dying, passed his gun to a nearby officer.

Ten terrorists then climbed on the tank. As one looked in through the open hatch, Ido shot and killed him. Then, others threw grenades inside the tank. Miraculously, Ido survived the blasts and drove the tank in circles, crushing as many terrorists as possible.

Soon, the tank’s engine stalled. Ido knew that he had to exit the tank quickly. Before leaving, he checked on Ariel, his crew mate, and discovered that he was dead. Taking his gun, Ido exited the tank. It was the first time he had been outside that morning. Injured and covered in blood, Ido crawled to some nearby bushes.

Two youngsters were also hiding there. When some terrorists approached, Ido shot and killed one of them. Other terrorists then charged the bush, stabbing Ido and hitting him with large rocks that broke his jaw. Though Mai and Daniel died, miraculously Ido was not killed.

Don’t Give Up

As Ido sought another place of refuge, he found two people, Batshevah and Ilay, behind a nearby bush. They had been hiding in complete silence, though terrorists had surrounded them for hours. Badly bleeding, Ido stumbled, fell beside them, and exclaimed: “My crew is dead, and I need to be evacuated!” Ido, in great pain, continued to cry out loudly. Batshevah and Ilay knew that any sound might reveal their location, so Ilay held Ido’s hands and tried to help the wounded soldier breathe through the pain, to keep him quiet.

Back at Ido’s tank, over 60 festival goers sought shelter behind it, joined by a handful of police who had little hope of defending everyone. They used the tank’s first-aid supplies to treat the wounded.

Ido, Bathshevah, and Ilay remained in the bush for many hours until they were rescued that night. In time, Ido recovered from his injuries. In addition, all those who sheltered by the tank are still alive today.

Most of us Believers in Yeshua/Jesus as Messiah have experienced trouble and difficulty, though typically not like people in Southern Israel did on October 7. We can be certain that the Lord has not left or abandoned us (Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:20). As Believers, we are called “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14). The Lord has good works for us to accomplish that He has prepared for us in advance (Eph. 2:10). Therefore, let Ido’s story inspire you to never give up. Continue pursuing God’s calling in your life and run your race, always keeping the faith (2 Tim. 4:7). “…Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the Cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:1–2).

Im tirdefu lada-at oto —
“Press on to know HIM!” (Hosea 6:3 NLT),

Many blessings from Israel,

Sarah Liberman

P.S. Worldwide protests and pronouncements reveal that people in many nations are anti-Israel and anti-Zionist. Please continue praying for the people of Israel, especially Believers, that they will recognize the Lord’s presence with them and rely on His grace to run the race set before them. ✡

: What an Inspiration!

Ido’s story should inspire us ZLMers physically and emotionally. In the same way, a trip to the Holy Land can be spiritually inspiring. Tour groups will eventually return to Israel, just as we are planning to do in October, assuming it is safe to travel there. Please consider joining us this fall — it would greatly enhance your spiritual walk.

For more information or to reserve your place on this Bible study pilgrimage, contact our tour manager, Sandra, at 214-696-9760, travel@levitt.com, or at levitt.com/tours.

A Note from Joshua and Caleb Colson

The trauma that Israelis suffered on October 7 is much greater than anything most Americans (notwithstanding many in the military) have experienced in our own sheltered lives. We wish that all people around the world could share in our nation’s privilege and protection. But, as Josh can attest, based on 20 years of missionary travels to third-world countries, global persecution of Christians and Jews is still prevalent.

In the U.S., however, we are now seeing unbridled anti-Semitism, especially on college campuses. Hatred is no longer hidden. University students and others freely threaten Jewish people with genocide without repercussions.

In 586 B.C., the Babylonians continued their long siege against Jerusalem. Disease and starvation were rampant; desperate mothers even ate their infant children (Lam. 4:10)! During Judah’s earlier times of peace, the Prophet Jeremiah had prophesied the coming destruction. In the midst of the siege, Jeremiah was imprisoned in the courtyard of the king’s palace. Earlier, he almost died after being confined to a muddy cistern. As he pondered the future, however, God gave him a message of hope. Despite the Babylonian devastation, the Lord declared the return of the Jews from exile, the future restoration of all Israelites, and the coming of a Messiah to establish a New Covenant (Jeremiah 30–33).

Amid similar animosity and chaos against God’s Chosen People today, the Lord recently sent us back to Israel with a message of hope and restoration! Several conflicts, like Iran’s rocket assault on Israel in mid-April, delayed our return to the Land. Finally, we will have completed filming for our new television series Rebuilding the Ruined Cities. As we visited the locations of many of the October 7 atrocities, including the Re’im music festival grounds, we filmed teaching about past persecution of the ancient Hebrews and how God continually restored them to their inheritance. As a unique twist in this series, we will showcase ministries and non-profits in the Land who labor to bless Israel, especially people who suffered from Hamas’s attacks.

Sha’alu shalom Yerushalayim! —
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!” (Psalm 122:6),

Joshua and Caleb

P.S. Please keep praying for and standing on behalf of the Jewish people worldwide. This ministry continues to depend on your generous financial gifts, which help us continue to declare the Gospel of Yeshua to the Jew first and also to the gentile (Rom. 1:16). ✡

Our Jewish Roots TV programs in June

David and Kirsten Hart

June is usually a time to relax and enjoy fun summer activities, especially if you have school-aged children. With OJR, however, there is no slowing down! We are busy producing insightful Bible teaching television programs for all of our viewers.

Joshua, Caleb, and our producer Ken Berg recently returned from the Holy Land after filming hours of teaching in some challenging areas of Israel. As the production team edits a myriad of footage from the land of the Bible, you will enjoy highlights from our Dateline Jerusalem series about End Times prophecies that are being fulfilled before our eyes.

In addition, we present a stand-alone program featuring questions that we’ve received from viewers. These Q&As are some of our favorite programs because your thought-provoking questions often surprise Joshua and Caleb.

Dateline Jerusalem: The Coming Temple

This series spotlights the growing movement among religious Jewish people as they prepare to construct the Third Temple in Jerusalem and reinstate the sacrificial system. With primary teaching from Dr. Jeffrey Seif in Israel, we also join Joshua and Caleb in the studio to discuss how these topics relate to us Believers today.

Way of Worship — God gave detailed instructions for worship in the Tabernacle and the Temple. Unfortunately, by Yeshua’s (Jesus’) time, the religious leaders had corrupted many of these worship practices. In this program, we will explore how God intended for His ancient people to worship Him. Yeshua, of course, was the final sacrifice.

Need for Worship — This program will look at worship during a future spiritual awakening in Israel, as prophesied in the Bible. Among other things, this End Times renewal will see the sacrificial system reinstated in a new Temple. If you have a heart for worship, you won’t want to miss this program!

Sacrifices for Sin — In ancient times, God established a sacrificial system to atone for sin. These animal sacrifices foreshadowed Yeshua’s ultimate substitutionary atonement. During Yeshua’s millennial rule, future Temple sacrifices will serve as symbolic reminders rather than having any atoning effect. While this is a heavy topic, we can be confident that Yeshua’s sacrificial death on the Cross permanently covered our sins and paid our sin debt.

Your Letters and Josiah Preview — In the studio, Joshua and Caleb answer questions that viewers have sent to our ministry. This program also features a sneak peek at our new series that begins later this summer, Josiah and the Last Reformation.