Shalom Partner and Friend of Israel,

"Look at the birds of the air; they do NOT sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" – Matthew 6:26. Did you know how more valuable you are to God? The Bible has many examples of how "considering the birds" is important. Our modern day is filled with science and technology …BUT nothing can compare to the Creator …and nothing is more important than our God and His Word. Let’s take time to think different thoughts. We are living in "perilous times" of Matthew 24 and Luke 21 …and in times where God is NO longer revered, the Bible – God’s Word has been removed from schools, workplaces, governments …and most leaders today have become Globalists "tyrants" who are power hungry seeking dictatorship rule while playing "god" over the same people they promised to protect. It is a godless world that is rapidly changing and we as true believers in Yeshua (Jesus) simply cannot do without God – our Creator. Let’s look at God through His Creation – birds, flowers, animals, fish etc., and it’s here that we realize it can only be GOD. In this teaching - let’s take our Lord’s Word and "Consider the BIRDS of the air" – we certainly can learn from them!

Why do birds fly in an inverted "V" formation? The good sense of the GOOSE; In the fall (autumn) when we see GEESE heading south for the winter flying in the "V" formation, we might be interested in knowing what science has discovered about why God made them fly that way. It has been learned that as each bird flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater range than if each bird flew on its own. Whenever a goose falls out of formation - it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go through it alone …and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the power of the flock. If we have as much sense as a goose, we will share information with those who are headed the same way we are going. When the lead goose gets tired, he rotates back in the wing and another goose takes over. The geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep their speed. The next time you see a formation of geese remember it’s such an example of team work!

The "V"-shaped formation that "geese" use when migrating serves TWO important purposes: First, it conserves their energy. Each bird flies slightly above the bird in front of him, resulting in a reduction of wind resistance. The birds take turns being in the front and then falling back when they get tired. In this way, the geese can fly for a long time before they must stop for rest! The second benefit to the "V" formation is that it is easy to keep track of every bird in the group. Did you know that "fighter pilots" often use this formation for the same reason? Finally, when a goose gets sick or is wounded by a gun shot and falls out, two geese fall out of the formation and follow the injured one down to help and protect him. They stay with him until he is either able to fly or until he is dead, and then they launch out with another formation to catch up with their group! If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other when things get rough.

Consider the EAGLES… who are one of the most mentioned birds in Scripture. Eagles are often used to symbolise strength …and the character of Almighty God! One thing that stands out clearly is that eagles are the "kings of the air," and the largest of the world’s birds of prey, both golden and bald eagles can fly higher and soar longer than any other kind of bird due to their incredibly large wingspans. In addition, they have very sharp eyesight and can see farther than most other birds. In fact, it is estimated that eagles can spot prey as small as rodents on the ground while soaring a mile or more up in the sky. In Psalm 103:5 God says; He will renew our youth "like the eagles" and again in Isaiah 40:31 echoes this statement, saying; He will renew our strength!

We read that "the Eagles will be gathered together" and so who are these "eagles?" "For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together." - Matthew 24:27-28. If we ever read the preceding passage and wonder what it truly meant then we see there is a hidden Parable-style message behind Yeshua’s (Jesus) Words. We may see more meaning and that the word for "body" here can either refer to a "dead body" or "carcass." In the Greek texts used for the King James and NIV Bible Versions, the word translated as eagles is "ahetos", which according to Strong's Concordance usually refers to an eagle, though it can refer to other large birds of prey.

However, in the passage found in Luke 17:37; "And they answered and said to Him, ‘Where, Lord?’ So, He said to them, ‘Wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together.’" The word for "body" does NOT indicate that the body is "dead" …and so it lends itself to several more interpretations than recorded in Matthew’s Gospel in NKJV version of the Bible. (In the NIV – the birds are referred to as "vultures.") There are many reasons why these passages are difficult to understand. In the NIV translation of Luke, for example, the body referred to is called "a dead body" - whereas the King James Version does NOT refer to "a dead body!" In fact, the Greek word used to refer to the body in Luke’s version of this is "soma", and this word is usually always used to refer to "a living body!" However, in either translation, Matthew’s rendition of the passage uses the word "ptoma", which always means a dead body or carcass of non-specific origin.

The translators of the NIV Version used the word "vulture" in both Matthew and Luke’s version of the passage based on Matthew’s use of the word "carcass" alone.  So, we really NEED to ponder why the newer Bible translations refer to a vulture as opposed to the eagle …since it is fairly certain that both groups of translators knew that these Bible references to "birds of prey" really are meant to identify a specific type of person! First of all, though eagles can and do eat carrion too …the mental picture we have of "eagles" is much more pleasant than for "vultures" - which are seen as "dirty and disgusting."  In addition, the word "vulture" can be used to refer to "a greedy or unscrupulous person" …with no love or compassion. Could it therefore be that the NIV translators wanted to give the impression that the persons being gathered are evil rather than good, whereas the King James translators saw these people in a more godly light?  

"And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." - Matthew 24:31. Fascinatingly, in the KJV or NKJV Versions, we are told that these eagles … "will be gathered together" …whereas in the NIV Version, both passages simply say that the eagles … "will gather" where the body is. Looking at the Greek, Matthew’s Gospel uses the Greek word "sunago" translated as "will be gathered together", whereas Luke’s passage uses the compound word "episunago", which is almost identical in meaning to "sunago" …except that "episunago" emphasizes the idea of "being gathered together into one place." So why does the New International Version simply translate this as "will gather"? This passage refers to Yeshua’s (Jesus’) Second Coming. There is NO mention whatsoever of destroying the wicked at the "Battle of Armageddon" in this passage …but only a reference to "gathering up -the "elect" or "elektos", and this term means "favourite" or "specially chosen" and refers to true born-again believers – Bride of Christ.

America’s symbol is of "the bald EAGLE" … and for almost 300 years, the United States was the only truly safe haven in the world for Jews and Christians of all denominations …and many people of other faiths found freedom from religious persecution there. Sadly, that is changing rapidly and in fact acceleration of a magnitude never seen before …and especially since 2019 - the land that of the "eagle" that once sheltered Christians and Jews is now turning its back on both God’s people; Israel and the Church …and declaring them to be "enemies of the State." Judea-Christian values and God’s Holy Word – the Bible is being replaced and removed by godless Liberals with their Socialist, Communist views. (This is also happening in Europe, Africa, Australia and nations around the world.) Based on this recent turn of events, is it any wonder that the birds of prey in these passages about "the gathering of eagles" today represent Judea-Christian believers …and the "vultures" today represent the godless humanistic, atheistic, ideological Socialists – Communists, so-called Elites, Hollywood and World Leaders that now are in control of Governments, Media, Schools and Universities, etc?

The message given in Matthew 24:31, is that "the elect" are the ones "who are to be gathered up" - NOT the wicked! "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." - Exodus 19:4-6. Uncannily, this beautifully inspiring passage in Isaiah 40:31; "But those who wait on Yahweh shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like EAGLES, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not be faint" - appears to be connected to an earlier passage that refers to the Resurrection of the dead bodies of true believers in the Rapture; "Your dead shall live; together with my dead body they shall arise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust; for your dew is like the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. For behold, Yahweh comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain." - Isaiah 26:19-21.

Consider the Raven and the Dove… Before Noah sent out the innocent "dove" from the ark and symbol of "peace"- he first released "a raven" (Genesis 8:7). If the raven’s purpose was meant to be the same as the dove’s …then it must have failed in its mission

Consider the Raven and the Dove… Before Noah sent out the innocent "dove" from the ark and symbol of "peace"- he first released "a raven" (Genesis 8:7). If the raven’s purpose was meant to be the same as the dove’s …then it must have failed in its mission …and because of this the "raven" is often condemned, for example; Philo, the Jewish commentator, said it was a symbol of Satan …and Augustine said it personified impure men and procrastinators. Did you know that "Ravens" don’t sing? They croak. They look a little menacing. They have represented war and destruction, doom, the void, annihilation, death. BUT they are also highly intelligent birds and studies determined that they fall in love. In the Bible, they haunted the ruins of cities laid waste by the wrath of God. But it is also the same bird that flies in to feed Elijah (1 Kings 17:6) when he is stranded in the desert. How merciful is God in showing us through the "Raven" that God can use anything and anyone of us to accomplish His purposes.

In Matthew 6:26, Yeshua (Jesus) says; "Consider (look) at the birds of the air!" But, in Luke 12:24; "Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds!" Here the Lord says, more specifically; "Consider the raven!" The raven isn’t pure or innocent - it fails, it blunders, it’s noble, it’s shifty …much like us. Our Lord says "consider it and don’t be anxious!" If our God feeds and takes care of the "Ravens" who are "Carrion" birds or "birds of prey" and whose diet includes varying proportions of other animals' carcasses. Surely - God will care for us! You see innocence is not a pre-requisite and God knows our sinful ways!

Consider the Dove… God hovers over the face of the water in Genesis 6 like a dove! Did you know the Bible has much to say about doves a family of birds related to, and to some degree, including "the pigeon?" They are small, and delicate, but resilient, and can survive and thrive in a variety of environments including cities and inhospitable places. There are species of doves, turtle doves and pigeons all over the world. Some of the characteristics these creatures have that reflect God’s nature include their presence over so much of the world, symbolizing in a way God’s omnipresence, as well as their nurturing nature reflecting His love. The DOVE appears as a symbol and a tool of God in both the Old and New Testaments. The dove first appears by name, singled out, in Genesis, playing a key role in the life of Noah, the last of the great patriarchs. Genesis 6:11 – 9:19 details; how humanity universally "fell away from God" …and into SIN – except for Noah and his family. Finally, after sending a dove again, she found somewhere to land, and did not return. God shows Noah through the dove that his family had a future, and that his patience was going to be rewarded.  

In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit chose to manifest itself "in the form of a dove" … At the beginning of His ministry, Yeshua (Jesus) went out to see his cousin, John the Baptist, in order to be baptized. The Bible records, "And when Yeshua was baptized, immediately He went up from the water .and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending "like a dove" and coming to rest on Him …and behold a VOICE from Heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased’" – Matthew 3:16-17. In this incredible moment, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are present on earth. Yeshua is in His physical body, the Father speaks audibly for all present to hear, and the Spirit manifested "like a dove!" The Trinity manifested, with one choosing to show itself as a bird which symbolizes peace, comfort, and the fulfilment of promises.

Mary and Joseph offered "turtle doves" for Yeshua (Jesus) at the Temple (Synagogue)… "…So they offered the sacrifice required in the law of the Lord— "either a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons." – Luke 2:23-25. Why? God showed consideration for the poor, the poor could offer birds instead of the more costly sheep as a sacrificial offering.

Leviticus 12:8. The dove is small and delicate, weak against larger animals, as seen in Psalm 74, much like man is weak without God. "My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my saviour; you save me from violence. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies" – 2 Samuel 22:3-4. David often used the dove in this way, acknowledging weakness, or to represent SHALOM - peace. In Ezekiel, the doves mourn, just as people do …because; "in the world you will have tribulation" – John 16:33. Through the Centuries, "the dove" came to be used differently. From God using it as "a sign" of promises fulfilled to Noah, to poetic use by David, to the Holy Spirit’s manifestation, the dove remained consistent, even if its usage changed. Today just like the Word of God warned us in Matthew 24 that it "would be like in the Days of Noah" before His return!

Abram (Abraham) has to shoo them away from his offering… Then "birds of prey," as seen in Genesis 14:13; 15:11 came down upon the carcases …and Abram frightened them away. The birds of prey represented the foes of Israel, who would seek to eat up, i.e., exterminate it. And the fact that Abram frightened them away was "a sign," that Abram's faith and his relation to the Lord would preserve the whole of his posterity from destruction, that Israel would be saved for Abram's sake (Psalm 105:42). The birds of prey, regarded as unclean, swooping down threatened to carry off the pieces of flesh. This would have interrupted the ceremony with an evil omen, polluted the sacrifice, and impaired the Covenant. Abram drives away the birds of ill omen. In the context, these birds evidently symbolized the Egyptians, who threatened, by enslaving Israel in Egypt, to frustrate the fulfilment of the "Divine Promise of God" to the seed of Abram. The chasing away of the birds typified the surmounting of all obstacles. The great peril of Abram’s posterity, who were NOT only torn in pieces like these sacrifices, but even the remainder of them were likely to be devoured by the Egyptians, whose king is compared to an eagle, the chief of the birds of prey, Ezekiel 17:1-24.

Consider the Sparrow… "How lovely is your dwelling place, LORD Almighty!  My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.  Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young - a place near your altar, LORD Almighty, my King and my God." – Psalm 84:1-3. The sparrow is just a bird …but the Bible indicates that we are worth more than many "Sparrows" to the Lord. It is simply a small, cute, bird that eat seeds and sings sweetly and there is nothing particularly significant about them …which brings us to the point; "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father." – Matthew 10-29-30.  So, if His eye is on that little bitty Sparrow, then we can know without a doubt that HE watches us. He loves us and is going to take care of us! We have never seen a dead sparrow and sometimes wonder if our merciful, loving God catches those little birds where their life-span is over, and puts them right up in heaven with the angels …because if God’s eye is on the Sparrow and us too, we can have faith - be blessed, and fear NOT!

God is a bird who carries the Israelites on her wings — a bird under whose feathers we will find refuge. Birds are an occurring theme throughout the Bible that represents both the "good" and "bad." Many of the birds in the Bible represent the best in us – what’s noble – pointing us towards the best versions of ourselves. These are the messages brought to us courtesy of the dove, sparrow, robin, peacock, eagle, and other winged creatures. Birds are the currency of mercy and the birds of sacrifice. They brought bread to the Prophets. They are food for the wanderers.

Consider the Partridges… 1 Samuel 26:20 talks about the king of Israel hunting a partridge in the mountains. This is probably the sand partridge, the most common partridge in the Middle East.

Consider the Peacocks… The peacock was, and still is, praised for its fine plumage. It was undoubtedly an ornamental bird 3000 years ago when it is mentioned in Scripture (1 Kings 10:22; 2 Chronicles 9:21) like it is today.

Consider the Ostriches… Ostriches were likely more common in Bible times than they are today. As mentioned in Job 39:13-18, the ostrich was famous for laying its eggs and going off without incubating them, letting the sun incubate them instead.

Consider the Bitterns… Isaiah 14:23 mentions bitterns—an aquatic bird similar to storks, Heron, ibises and cormorants—that will inhabit the desolate marshy areas. Zephaniah 2:14 also mentions them, saying that they will roost on the ruins of Babylon.

Consider the Chickens… In the Gospels, a rooster crowing three times signified Peter’s betrayal of Yeshua (Jesus) (Matthew 26:47). And in the Parables: "And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up." – Matthew 13:4. Yeshua also likens Himself to a "mother hen" who gathers chicks under her wings in Matthew 22:37. The Lord asks his hearers to "consider the birds." Don’t we just love this about him. He says this could keep us from being anxious. Maybe we don’t need medication after all, maybe we could just slow down, pay attention, and watch birds.

Consider the Owls, Vultures, Bats …

Leviticus 11 features the most comprehensive list of birds in the Bible, differentiated as clean or unclean foods. Verse 13 mentions vultures, kites, ravens, six kinds of owl, gulls, hawks, cormorants, storks, herons and even bats! The strange inclusion of the bat is likely because the Israelites didn’t use our modern zoological terms and identified it as a bird. After all, it flies, does it not?

Consider the “Birds” that WILL gorge on the flesh of the defeated armies of the Antichrist in Revelation… "Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to ALL the BIRDS that fly in midheaven, 'Come, assemble for the Great Feast of God,’" - Revelation 19:17. John reports in this verse that he saw and heard an angel that was standing in the sun. This angel -highlighted in the sun's brilliance …calls upon all the birds in the sky to meet together for God's great supper. This summons anticipates the destruction of the armies of earth that join forces in a futile attempt to battle the King of kings and Lord of lords. The context indicates that the birds are flesh-eating birds. The high-ranking rulers and their armies may be decked out in colourful regalia at the beginning of the battle, but they soon they will be rotting corpses – food for vultures! As it was in the Days of Noah (Genesis 6) – so shall it also be at Yeshua (Jesus) Second Coming. Here we get the connection to: Matthew 24:28; "Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather." And Ezekiel 39:17–20 describes the Great Supper of God as a sacrificial feast on the mountains of Israel …that He is preparing for BIRDS of every sort and for all the beasts of the field. He says the birds and beasts will eat the flesh of the mighty and drink the blood of princes until they are full. This symbolism, of battle-slain bodies being eaten by carrion birds, was a common feature of ancient depictions of war (1 Samuel 17:44).

Revelation 19:11–21 describes one of Scripture's most spectacular moments of victory: the Second Coming of Christ. In this event, He returns to earth at the close of the Tribulation. (At His First Coming to earth, Yeshua (Jesus) appeared as a baby and Sacrificial Saviour. BUT this time -He arrives as “King of kings” and “Lord of lords.” Many prior Scriptures Prophesied this epic day of victory (Matthew 25; Zechariah 14:1–4; 2; Thessalonians 2:7–12; Hebrews 9:27–28; Jude 1:14–15). Christ arrives in a blaze of glory, obliterating His enemies single-handedly, at the head of the Armies of Heaven. The Antichrist and False Prophet become the first two cast into the lake of fire, ushering in the beginning of Christ's Millennial Reign on Earth. Consider the Birds!

We hope that you enjoy and become more informed by our work. We serve an awesome God and we are humbled by this opportunity to bring you this information. With Shalom to you and your family always,

Alf & Julie Saunders

01^st February, 2022

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