(shofar blaring)

- This week on "Jerusalem Dateline,"

Iran and Israel face off ina war of words and threats.

Could a military confrontation be far off?

Plus, the growing threat of China

and what it means to the free world,

and how to pray about a world

that seems poised on the verge of war,

and the true color purplefrom 3,000 years ago,

and how it confirms the Bible,

all this and more this weekon "Jerusalem Dateline."

Hello, and welcome to thisedition of "Jerusalem Dateline."

I'm Chris Mitchell.

Iran denied a request by FrenchPresident Emmanuel Macron

to include Saudi Arabia in negotiations

for a new nuclear agreement.

It's one of the latestdevelopments in the effort

to keep Iran from getting a nuclear bomb.

President Macron warnsthat time is growing short

to keep Iran fromgetting a nuclear weapon.

Iran says it's reachingits goal of producing

20% in rich uranium faster than expected.

20% is one step away fromweapons-grade uranium.

- (speaking in foreign language)

- [Interpreter] We weresupposed to produce

120 km of 20% uranium annually, but now,

in less than one month, we have enriched

about 17 kg, which is evenahead of our timetable.

- [Chris] While the Biden administration

says it wants to negotiate astronger, better nuclear deal,

Iran and its ally,Turkey, refuse that offer.

Iran wants to use its leverage

to drop the economic sanctions.

- (speaking in foreign language)

- [Interpreter] I should emphasize this.

America was the one whowithdrew from the JCPOA

and breached its commitments.

Now, it's America thatshould return to the JCPOA

and fulfill its commitments.

- It also set a February 21st deadline

for the EU signatories to drop sanctions

or it will cut off accessfor UN nuclear inspectors

and increase uranium enrichment.

The Biden administrationis considering naming

Robert Malley as its envoyto the nuclear negotiations.

Critics, like Senator Tom Cotton said

the choice of Malley wouldsend the wrong signal to Iran.

He tweeted, "It's deeplytroubling that President Biden

would consider appointing RobMalley to direct Iran policy.

Malley has a long track record of sympathy

for the Iranian regimeand animus towards Israel.

The ayatollahs wouldn't believe

their luck if he is selected."

In the meantime, Israelis watching closely,

and on Sunday, IsraeliDefense Minister, Benny Gantz,

told an Egyptian TVstation, it's keeping open

its military option to stopIran's nuclear program.

The US Senate Committee voted

to back President Biden's nominee

for Ambassador to the United Nations,

paving the way for full Senate approval.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield ispledging to continue to fight

against the anti-Israel BDS movement

at the international body.

CBN News correspondent,Julie Stahl, shows us

what the BDS movement is all about.

- [Julie] It's called BDS, the Boycott,

Divestment and Sanctions movement.

- BDS are, in fact, all aboutcreating political pressure

on the State of Israel to allow economic,

academic and cultural boycott or pressure

on the State of Israel to allow

millions of Palestinians toreturn to the State of Israel.

- [Julie] Author Einat Wilf says BDS uses

what she calls the placard strategy.

- Placard strategy is the equations that

everyone who goes to ananti-Israel demonstration

sees on their placards.

Zionism equals or Israelequals or Star of David equals.

It never says Zionism equalsthe political movement

for self-determinationof the Jewish people

in their homeland, whichis the accurate definition.

- [Julie] And Wilf saysit's been very effective,

even though the equations are lies.

- Their words likecolonialism, racism, apartheid,

sometimes even Nazism and genocide.

These words are all chosen because,

in our collective consciousness,they connote evil.

Basically, people areexposed to an ongoing refrain

that says, "Zionism, Israel,Star of David equals evil."

- [Julie] It's not only about slogans

on placards at demonstrations.

- It's in the United Nations.

It's on television.

Give an anti-Israel speaker30 seconds on television,

they'll manage to sayIsrael, Zionism, colonialism,

apartheid, genocide in the same sentence,

regardless of what is the question.

- [Julie] BDS often claimsto be a grass roots movement,

but Tzachi Gavrieli says

there's nothing grass roots about it.

- One could be operating in New York.

One could be in Italy.

It's a network operatedand being headquartered

from Ramallah by anelement or organization

called the BNC, theBDS National Committee.

- [Julie] Wilf says there's nothing new

about the movement.

- The Palestinians are stillcommitted to their old goal

of no sovereign statefor the Jewish people

in any borders anywhere.

The BDS movement continuesthe same old idea

that the Jewish people are uniquely evil,

that the world will be a better place

if there was no Jewish state in it,

which again is a veryancient antisemitic theme.

- [Julie] Both Wilf and Gavrieli said

it's important to keep fighting.

- Continue very vigorously and with

(speaking in foreign language)

as the Lord said, "Be very strong

to tell the truth about Israel."

- First thing is really toexpose BDS for what it is,

that it might be non-violent in its means,

but it is very violent in its end,

about the fact that it's not about peace,

and ultimately, they should be confronted

on campuses, in the media,everywhere which they operate

to expose them fortheir sinister purposes.

- [Julie] Julie Stahl,CBN News, Jerusalem.

(rock music)

- [Chris] Up next, thegrowing menace of China

and what it means for the free world.

(upbeat music)

(lively music)

♪ Joy, and where there'sjoy, there's action ♪

♪ It's like a great attraction ♪

♪ That starts a chain reaction ♪

♪ With a little more satisfaction ♪

♪ I love the way this joy makes me move ♪

♪ I got the joy ♪

♪ I dance around because I know it ♪

♪ Joy, I move around because I got it ♪

♪ Joy, joy is in the heart ♪

♪ Joy, I dance around because I know it ♪

♪ Joy, I move around because I got it ♪

♪ Joy, joy is in the heart ♪

♪ Joy, joy is in the heart ♪

♪ Joy ♪

- [Announcer] His storyhas inspired the world

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doubted his very existence.

- We are shedding some light on the story

of David and Goliath.

- [Man] This is ancient,biblical Jerusalem.

- [Announcer] CBN films presents,

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Discover inspiring programsand stories of hope,

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To watch the CBN NewsChannel, download the app

or visit CBNNewsChannel.com.

(rock music)

- China is the greatest threatto freedom and democracy.

That warning came from the former top

US intelligence official, who said America

should also prepare foran open-ended period

of confrontation with Beijing.

George Thomas has the details.

- Napoleon Bonaparte, theFrench military leader

said, more than two centuries ago

that, "China is a sleeping lion.

Let her sleep, for when she wakes,

she will shake the world."

China's president, XiJinping, has emphatically

declared that the lion has awakened.

(boots tramping)

John Ratcliffe, Directorof National Intelligence,

wrote in a recent wallStreet Journal editorial

that China is America's number one

national security threat,and that, 'Beijing

intends to dominate the rest of the planet

economically, militarily,and technologically."

Michael O'Hanlon is withBrookings Institute.

- It is the way a great power

with a non-democraticgovernment chooses to seek

to extend its influence worldwide,

- Ratcliffe accuses China of deploying

what he calls a rob,replicate and replace approach

in its ambitions to dominate the world.

- It's been well knownfor decades that China

tries to copy the industryof other countries

and then takes it to scale,makes it more efficient,

and largely operates,sorta built its way up

through the global economicranks with that approach.

- [George] China'sforeign ministry dismisses

Ratcliffe's claims whileaccusing Washington

of unnecessary playing the China threat.

- (speaking in foreign language)

- [Interpreter] The relevant article

with its sensationaltitle does not present

any solid evidence at all.

It offered nothing newbut repeating the lies

and rumors to smear China.

- [George] CBN News hasdocumented China's rise

for more than two decades.

Fast-forward to 2020 as we examine

how China's president,Xi Jinping, has been

massively overhaulingthe country's military,

economy and political influence as part of

his great rejuvenation project.

- Which, to put it intosort of Trumpian terms,

means to make China great again.

- [George] Tom Millerdocuments China's rise

in the book, "China's Asian Dream."

Miller says, since takingthe reins, Xi has been

on a trajectory of preparing China

to be the world's dominant power.

- China has been very very deliberately

trying to realize its kind of ambition

to become the global superpower.

- [George] Chinesescholars say it's also part

of Xi's deep belief that his country

has a divine right to rule the world.

- The mandate of Heaven isfrom China's imperial past,

where Chinese emperor's believe that

they not only have the right,

but they were compelled byHeaven to rule the world,

and there's this notion ofTianxia or all under Heaven.

(artillery blasting)

- [George] One way is by military force.

As commander-in-chief of theworld's largest fighting force,

Xi has remade China's People'sLiberation Army or PLA

into a military rapidly closingthe gap on US firepower,

The Pentagon revealing for the first time

that China now has theworld's largest Navy

and plans to double itsnuclear warhead arsenal

in this decade, whichincludes ballistic missiles

that can reach the United States.

- It's likely thatChina will seek to build

a military that is equalto or, in some cases,

superior to the USmilitary or the military

of any other great powerthat China perceives

as a potential threat.

- [George] O'Hanlon saysChina's capabilities

in emerging technologies such as robotics,

artificial intelligence, andnext-generation technology

and telecommunications nowrival that of the United States.

- We used to be ahead o'China by, you know, half a lap

on the proverbial track.

Now, we're ahead by maybe a few strides,

and China is maybe even closingthe gap further as we go.

- Ratcliffe insists thatresisting China's ambitions

of becoming an economic, military

and technological superpower will be

the challenge of our generation,

and warns that America should prepare

for an open-ended period ofconfrontation with Beijing.

George Thomas, CBN News.

(rock music)

- [Chris] Up next, a conversation about

how to understand the timesand how to pray for the world.

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Call now or go to CBN.com/StandWithIsrael.

(dramatic music)

- Here, we're committed to

a heritage or rigorous scholarship,

dating back over a thousandyears, and to a faith tradition

dating back a thousand more.

- This is how we createa culture of inquiry,

where no topic is off limits,

and a culture of hope

- where anything's possible.

- It's Christian leadership.

- And it's changing theworld for the better.

- It's higher learning.

- It's greater knowing.

- It's what makes us whole.

- It's what makes us Regent.

(rock music)

- Many Christians aroundthe world are concerned

about the growingpersecution of the church,

cancel culture and the possibility of war.

To address these concerns redemptively

and how to pray about these times,

Rick Ridings, co-founder of Succat Hallel,

a 24/7 prayer ministry here in Jerusalem

wrote an article called,"Intercession and Prayer:

How To Intercept World War III."

I spoke with Ridingsabout his prayer strategy,

detailed in the article.

Rick, thanks for joiningus on "Jerusalem Dateline."

You wrote recently that this time

is one of the most importanttimes to be praying

since World War II.

What did you mean by that?

- I meant there's a global warfare.

Many times, people justlook at what's going on

in their country or one or two countries,

but there really is a globalspiritual warfare going on

that I believe is thegreatest since World War II.

At that time, they werebeing barraged with news

day after day of Hitlergetting another victory,

of him beginning to exterminate the Jews,

and it looked like therewas no way to stop him.

If you just went by what you saw

in the news at that time,it seemed totally hopeless

and why even pray?

What good will it do?

- You mentioned Rees Howells.

Why was he so instrumental in World War II

and what's the lesson for today?

- He was the head of aBible college in Wales

and they had really learnedin intercessory prayer

not to just pray inreaction to what you see

on the ground happeningaround you or in the news,

but to wait on the Lordin worship and prayer

until you could really beginto have God's perspective

and begin to find out, what does God want

to do in the future?

So, for example, in World War II,

when it looked like it was all over,

that Hitler was really decisively winning,

the Lord showed them to pray

that Hitler would go into Russia.

As a military man, heshould have known better

than to go into Russiawith a lot of his troops

right before winter, but he went in.

They prayed that he would notbe able to take Moscow quickly

as the news was predicting,

and Hitler just got stuck in the snow,

and it severely crippledeverything else he did,

and from there on, that was

the turning point of World War II.

- Rick, you talk aboutfive phases of prayer.

The first two are aboutintercepting World War III

and a time of war and a time of peace.

- I felt in 2017 that theLord spoke to my heart

that there was going tobe great harvest coming in

places like Iran, Saudi Arabia,

and I felt like he said,when that would begin,

Satan would try to cut it off

the same way he did with World War I,

which occurred right afterthe great outpourings

of the Holy Spirit in Wales,in Azusa Street, in Korea.

There was a great missionsmovement of young people

from universities going in large numbers,

and then Satan succeededin stirring up World War I,

and young people who wouldhave gone into missions

instead were sent into thewar and died in the war,

and I felt like the Lord said,

"Don't be ignorant of Satan's schemes.

He will try to start a World War III

when the harvest begins, and you are

to encourage people topray that that be stopped

in the way that Rees Howellssaw World II come to an end.

- Hm, in the next two phases, Rick,

you talk about geographical areas,

Taiwan and the South China Sea, and also

you talk about the capitalshere in this region,

Ankara, Tehran andMoscow, talk about those.

- I felt the Lord beganhighlighting that already in 2019

very clearly to us that there would be

an evil alliance forming between

Ankara and Tehran and Moscow.

Right after the Lord showed us that,

they're traditional enemies,it didn't make sense

that those three wouldwork closely together.

Right after the Lord showed us that,

a week later, they met inAnkara with the three from,

the three foreignministers of those nations.

So I believe there'ssomething evil, but again,

we're not fighting flesh and blood.

We're fighting againstprincipalities and powers,

but principalities use personalities,

and so, we need to cutit off at that level,

and I felt the Lord showed the same thing

would happen in China,that China would begin

by moving on Taiwan, and ifthat was not stopped early on,

it would grow into a regional war,

and if those two regional wars

happened at the same time,they could spin out of control

into a World War III.

- You talk about themantle of Rees Howells.

What did you mean by that?

- The mantle was thisunderstanding and revelation

that we're not to just pray according to

what we see with our eyesor think with our minds

or our political opinions, but that we're

to worship and pray until the Lord

begins to show us things as He sees them

because He's delegated authority

on the earth to the believers,

and we are to pray andproclaim His will upon earth

as it has already been decided in Heaven.

- Then finally, Rick, what are you there

at Succat Hallel praying right now?

- Well, we're praying obviouslyprotection over Israel.

We're praying protection andgrace in the Middle East,

that it not turn in, if there's any kind

of military action necessary with Iran

that that would happenquickly and decisively

and within God's boundaries,preferably covert warfare

to stop their nuclear bomb plans

rather than an overt warfare, and to pray

that the harvest will continue to go forth

in a great way in Persia and Iran

and in the Middle East,and also we're praying much

where this is a season where we believe

God is stirring up the Jewish people

to come home from places like New York,

where there's such an antisemitism

being expressed right now,and when they're here,

then Ezekiel 37 says that,

once the bones are connected,

God will begin to breatheupon them by his Holy Spirit.

That's where yourlisteners can pray for that

breath of the Holy Spirit for the

North, South, East andWest upon this land.

- Well, Rick Ridings,appreciate your article

and your exhortation to be praying

at this very important time.

- Always a joy to be withyou, Chris, bless you.

- If you'd like to read Ridings' article

or learn more about Succat Hallel,

you can log on to SUCCATHALLEL.COM.

(rock music)

Up next, a groundbreaking discovery

that sheds new light on the Bible

from the time of KingDavid and King Solomon.

Thank you for watching"Jerusalem Dateline."

We're committed to providing you

with unbiased reportingfrom the Holy Land.

Though weekly broadcasts,podcasts and online media,

our vision is to reachmillions around the globe

with the true story of what's happening

in Israel and the Middle East,

all from a biblical andprophetic perspective.

This is a big vision andis only made possible

by the generous supportof people like you.

- [Announcer] Call us tollfree at 1-800-700-7000

or go to CBN.com/JerusalemDateline

and make a donation that will help spread

the light of truth aboutIsrael throughout the world.

(dramatic music)

- It was not my grace,but God, that I might come

to the Irish nations to preach the gospel.

- [Announcer] Nowavailable from CBN Films,

"I am Patrick."

Get your DVD for a gift of $15 or more.

- What brings you back, Roman?

- People thought thathis mission was crazy,

that his efforts to Christianize Ireland

were doomed to failure.

- [Announcer] From slave to missionary.

- Who among you heeds the call?

- Well, why would thisman put himself in danger

among enemies who do not know God?

- [Announcer] From sinner to saint.

- [Announcer] Patrick'sstory began a chain of events

that is quite remarkablein the impact that it had.

- I am Patrick.

- Those are the words thatbegin the history of Ireland.

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- [Narrator] From "Superbook."

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(rock music)

- For the first time,Israeli archeologists

have recovered 3,000year old pieces of fabric

from the time of KingDavid and King Solomon.

The groundbreaking discoverysheds new light on the Bible

from the book of Genesis to the gospels.

The discovery took place onthis hill in Southern Israel.

Archeologists found theroyal color purple fragments

in the Timna Valley, andthrough carbon dating,

confirmed the fabric had beenpreserved for 3,000 years.

- The real excitement was when Naama,

Dr. Naama Sukenik, called me one day.

She told me, "well, we found this proof,

the molecules of the color fromthe lab, it's true purple."

- [Chris] True purplecomes from an ancient,

sophisticated process using dye

extracted from sea snails found

in the Mediterranean Sea.

It usually took a lot ofwork and thousands of snails,

which made the dye sometimesworth more than gold.

The dry, desert conditions in the Valley

preserved the fabric.

- So, we found in Timna, the Argaman,

the more purplish color, whichis associated with kings,

also the priests and also the tabernacle.

It provides an excellent background

to the biblical recordfor this particular time.

- [Chris] The region is mentioned

a number of times in the Bible.

The Timna Valley islocated in the Negev Desert

in Southern Israel, and it's also the area

of the Kingdom of Edom.

- In the book of Genesis, chapter 36,

we hear about the Kings of Edom

that ruled over the land of Edom

before Israel had kings.

- [Chris] This land is also where

Gideon defeated the Midianites.

- We hear in the book of Judges

about the Kings of Midianwhen Gideon, you know,

kills, he killed all the Midianite kings.

The spoil is actually thepurple, the Argaman garments.

So, we're really havinga physical evidence.

You can, you know, touch thegarment of an important figure,

if not the king of thesepeople 3,000 years ago.

- [Chris] And whereDavid defeated his foes.

- We read in the Bible that King David

went to South of the DeadSea, the Valley of Salt

in the book of Samuel, andthen he conquered the Edomites

and put garrisons all over the land.

- [Chris] Royal purple is also mentioned

in the New Testament.

Lydia from Thyatira in the book of Acts

was known as a seller of purple,

and purple is mentioned in the gospels.

- We hear that the Romans, they actually

forced Jesus to wear a purple robe

in preparation to the crucifixion.

The Romans claimed forthat He wanted to become

the King of the Jews.

- [Chris] Ben-Yosefbelieves this discovery

revolutionizes ourunderstanding of the Bible.

- I think that this is a game changer

in the way archeologistsand biblical scholars

understand the realityat that time period.

- [Chris] Some archeologistsdismiss the Bible

because there's no traditionalarchitectural evidence

for ancient kingdoms,like a city or a palace,

but he says they were nomadic kingdoms

that left little evidence behind.

- If you change the wayyou think about kings

and kingdoms in this earlyperiod and you understand

that nomadic tribescould have had a kingdom,

then suddenly, everything,I think, becomes much more

simpler to understand and to interpret.

- He sees the pieces of royalpurple fabric as evidence of

these ancient biblicalkingdoms and their kings.

This is one of the moreextraordinary stories

coming out of Israel,confirming the biblical record.

Well, that's all for thisedition of "Jerusalem Dateline."

Thanks for joining us.

Remember, you can follow us on Facebook,

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You can also access CBN content

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so you can continue to receive

all of our exciting CBN content.

I'm Chris Mitchell.

We'll see you next timeon "Jerusalem Dateline."

(rock music)