Welcome to Bible Fiber. I am Shelley Neese, president of The Jerusalem Connection, a Christian organization devoted to sharing the story of the people of Israel, both ancient and modern.

I have had the Bible Fiber episode on Nehemiah 13 written for weeks, but I have not had the power or will to release it as our regular scheduled Bible Fiber rollout. October 7th changed everything, and nothing has felt regular or routine. Like any organization, we always have a monthly plan for our written and digital communications to our audience. With Bible Fiber, I have the great advantage of being able to plan even further out since the Bible never changes.

But right now, even the words in the Bible are all framed through the horror and trauma of October 7th. My mind is unable to separate what is playing out in Israel from the words on the page in my Bible.

The Psalms, Lamentations, and Ecclesiastes especially pulsate with relevance in their call for vindication and judgement on Israel’s enemies. They also provide comfort that the God of the Jewish people will not forsake or abandon them at this hour. The emotional whiplash of the prophets has never felt so appropriate to the national mood in Israel.