Fortress Watchman

The Land of Israel has always been a dangerous place. There are always thieves and killers who survive off of the decent people. Of course, for most of history there are many different invaders trying to rule the land. For many years Israel has been known as the land of walls. You can see walls of all styles and descriptions. Simply studying the walls can carry a person back through all of man’s history. During the 11^th and 12^th centuries, many Europeans came on crusades to the land of Israel. They all built great fortresses so that they could sleep at night. The very style of their building can tell you which country the builders were from. (French, English, etc.) Several of these great structures are still standing and we can see how the soldiers lived years ago. Some even have the original mote surrounding them.

Usually there are about four watch-towers to be manned all the time. Most fortresses were built on top of a hill. This gave the watchman a great view of the land. When you climb one of these towers today the view is usually breathtaking.  In the old days if a watchman fell asleep he was put to death. The lives inside the fort were all his responsibility. Many times a fortress would pass from one group to the next depending on who was ruling at the time. Because of modern warfare the forts are no longer used. In fact, the Bible said this so long ago that the people probably thought the prophecy was crazy. You will say, I will invade a land of un-walled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people---all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. Ezekiel 38:11 It does not say it here but obviously there are no serious watchmen looking out for the people.

Our scriptures tell us that each of us is a watchman because we know the Gospel message.  7 “Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for the people …. Listen to what I say, and warn them for me. 8 … I say to a wicked person, ‘You wicked person, you will certainly die,' and you say nothing to warn him to change his ways. That wicked person will die because of his sin, and I will hold you responsible for his death. 9 But if you warn a wicked person to turn from his ways and he doesn't turn from them, then he will die because of his sin. However, you will save yourself. Ezek 33:7-9 Not until the Lord takes us away from this world our responsibility will be over. Some people say that these are Old Testament passages and they do not apply today. However, we are told that O.T. Scriptures are the patterns revealing what God wants for us all. Are we really serious about our belief in God?