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"Peter, do you love me?"This question and Yeshua's response to Peter are a key to unlocking the mystery of the Gentiles and Chanukkah, a holiday that most non-Jews believe is unique to Judaism. The prophesied Messiah was to restore the kingdom to Israel; that is, he was to regather the lost sheep of Israel who disappeared in various deportations by conquering empires. Yeshua, however, had earlier hinted that there were other sheep to gather, sheep that were not of the fold of First Century Judaisms. Although the Jews of the First Century anticipated the return of all Israel, they did not strongly associate Messiah's work with a gathering of sheep from among the nations who were not "native-born," but born strangers to the Covenant. The many conquests of Israel and Judah by idolatrous Assyria, Babylon, Greece, and Rome had not left many Jews concerned with the spiritual plight of the Gentiles. Yeshua, however, declined to deal only with Rome to demonstrate that he was indeed the Messiah and King of the Jews. The prophecy and plan was much bigger.Messiah must also be the King of Kings of all nations, the great Shepherd sent of the Father from Heaven to restore flocks of men to the one fold of Israel as foretold in the Prophets. Had Yeshua acted at that time, the "leaven" of the Holy Spirit could not work among the dough of the nations. Yeshua tells his disciples that they are a vital part of Messiah's extended work, a work intended to result in the "fullness of the Gentiles" who would hear his voice. These sheep would be found in the remotest parts of the Earth, and they would be reconciled to the Holy One of Israel through a shepherd-king.The Bible has been surrounded by witnesses as it traveled through time. Unless we go back to the witnesses, the people that it was written about, the history, and the culture in which it was written, readers come away with a less accurate picture of what the Bible is communicating. The Bible requires readers to appreciate those inside stories, to understand the authors and their audience as though we were there. Without that context, parts of Bible become one of those 'family things' that only those who are part of the family will understand. The Seven Shepherds relates the family stories so that many centuries later, readers can comprehend hidden meanings that were never really hidden. This book opens up nuances that family would have known and connected, but an outsider would have missed, such as the special dates, the family traditions, the stories of uncles and aunts in times past, or the bad neighbors. The Seven Shepherds of Hanukkah invite readers of Scripture into The Family of Israel and its dynamics.The Seven Shepherds takes the reader on a prophetic journey from the beginning pages of Genesis all the way to Revelation and the eventual release of the Adversary at the conclusion of the Seventh Millennium.

The word "Pharisee" in modern use means a hypocrite. Bible students rarely challenge this stereotype, but a closer reading of the gospel texts and First Century history bring new insights into the role of the Pharisees and their relationship to Yeshua (Jesus). A brief overview of the Jewish sects and cultural dynamics opens up the dialogues among Yeshua and his audiences, adding depth perception impossible when the Pharisees are dismissed as the arch-enemies of Yeshua. By comparing the Pharisees' own view of hypocrites and greed, Yeshua's corrections are understood as intra-faith discussion, not a Jesus-versus-the-Jews polemic. The most important legacy of the Pharisee is the formulation of a resurrection doctrine that most Christian readers take for granted. The First Century world, however, was not completely convinced. The timing of a Messiah preaching resurrection was perfectly cued to the Pharisees' short appearance in religious history, especially a zealous Jew named Paul. In explaining the "synagogue of Satan" in its First Century context, John's expressions in the Book of Revelation are understood in the original context, comparing the two schools of Pharisees and their treatment of Gentile converts.

Rapture or Resurrection? Many believe in an end-time event called The Rapture. Since most believers also expect a time of worldwide catastrophe called The Tribulation, the timing of The Rapture is often intertwined with that event in both theological books and Christian fiction. Since the rapture can be controversial, this book offers an alternate method of viewing the event called The Rapture. The Rapture is based on some proof texts of New Testament, yet there is an older Scriptural basis for the expectation of a similar event, the resurrection of the dead. The understanding of the resurrection is based in the TANAKH, or the Older Testament. This view has been handed down faithfully to hundreds of generations of Jews, both those who believe in the Messiahship of Yeshua (Jesus), and those who do not. This would have been the common "ingathering" language and expectation of the Jewish populace in the First Century, including the apostles who penned those proof texts. Yeshua and the early apostles were Jewish, so it is logical to examine their expectation of end times. This is the due diligence of any Bible study. The book contains two sections, the first addressing the Older Testament Scriptural clues to death and resurrection, and the second section addresses the more immediate question, "What happens when we die?" By correlating Jewish interpretations of certain passages of Scripture with the Scriptures themselves, any person of faith can find hope and comfort in the Biblical prophecies of resurrection.