John Riley: Welcome to the Middle East Report, your connection to Israel and its people, places, and land. Each week, we break through the lies and deception of the news media, social media, and misleading podcasters to give you the truth about what is actually happening on the ground. For those of us in the United States, October 7, which is coming up very soon as I record this, may be just another day on the calendar. But if you are a Jewish person anywhere in the world, especially someone living in Israel, October 7 is a day you will never forget. We will talk more about that in this edition of the Middle East Report. On October 7, 2023, terrorists attacked Jewish people and others in what has been described as the most horrible slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. This show is dedicated to bringing you the truth and standing with the Jewish people. Levi Hazen is our guest on this edition of the Middle East Report. He is the host of the TŌV Podcast, a teaching ministry that brings a biblical point of view on Israel, eschatology, and ministry to the Jewish people.
He is the director of Life in Messiah and the founder of Rushing River Productions. He is also the executive producer and host of the incredible investigative documentary Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. Levi Hazen, it is good to have you with us on this edition of the Middle East Report.
Levi Hazen: Thanks for having me, John. I’m looking forward to our conversation.
John Riley: Levi, I mentioned the date October 7, 2023, and the slaughter that happened in Israel on that day. We will be marking that date very soon. In a moment, we are going to talk about it in more detail. We are also going to discuss the investigative documentary Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege that your team produced. But before we do that, tell everyone about Life in Messiah and Rushing River Productions.
Levi Hazen: Absolutely. Life in Messiah exists to share the gospel with our Jewish friends around the world. We have staff in nine countries, and for about 140 years God has faithfully sustained this ministry because of His heart and faithfulness toward His people—whether they are in Israel, the United States, or elsewhere. At Life in Messiah, we actively share the gospel, teach a biblical position that keeps Israel in the Bible and recognizes the Jewish people as distinct, and stand against antisemitism. Our staff do this online and in person. We operate soup kitchens in Israel, meet regularly with Jewish people over coffee, fill pulpits, and teach in classrooms. People can learn more about the ministry and what God is doing through the work by visiting lifeinmessiah.org.
John Riley: And you have this powerful film production company called Rushing River Productions. It is focused on creating films that bring light into a very dark world. Levi, you have certainly done that by creating an incredible investigative documentary, Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. It examines what happened in Israel on October 7, 2023, and what has happened since that date.
John Riley: Let’s start right there. Some people may not know what happened on October 7, 2023. Not everyone remembers that day. Tell us about it, and then let’s get into the film your team created.
Levi Hazen: On the morning of October 7, 2023, people here in the United States woke up to reports that there had been an attack on Israel. That, in itself, is nothing new. Israel is used to experiencing terrorist attacks, missiles, and other threats from hostile neighbors. But this attack was different. Hamas terrorists, who are very open about their desire to eradicate not just Israelis but Jewish people around the globe, broke through Israel’s borders and slaughtered innocent civilians across multiple communities. They did not go after soldiers or other armed combatants. They went after women, husbands, and children. On October 7, 2023, we woke up to absolutely horrific reports of unspeakable things, John—things I will not even mention on air—that had been done to Jewish people. It was absolutely shocking because of the horrific
Levi Hazen: nature of it. Hamas had body cameras, so they filmed the whole thing. You could hear how joyful they were as they murdered and pillaged their victims. Thankfully, the Israel Defense Forces came to the rescue, but only after great harm had already been done and more than 200 hostages had been taken back to the terror tunnels in the Gaza Strip. Then, of course, war ensued. Aside from the shock of that event, John, what was also shocking was that just a day later, people were already in the streets and on college campuses calling for the downfall of Israel. In the immediate wake of the greatest massacre since the Holocaust, something had been opened up, John. I cannot see exactly what happened in the spiritual realm, but something was unleashed that day, and unfortunately, it has not been put back in the box. October 7 was an attack on Israel, but what happened afterward revealed something about the rest of the world. I think we now know that antisemitism never went away after World War II. It has been simmering beneath the surface, waiting for an opportunity to rear its ugly head.
Levi Hazen: When we saw the campus protests and heard people calling Israel a genocidal terrorist state, we decided to take action because that is who we are as a ministry. We have been called to this. We took our cameras to Columbia University because we wanted to stand with the Jewish people there and talk to some of the students on campus to find out what they really knew. Of course, it turned out that they did not know much. After interviewing students and others on college campuses, we took our cameras to Israel. We interviewed survivors of Hamas’s attack on the Nova Music Festival, along with Arab Israelis, soldiers, pastors, and others. That is the story of this film and why we produced it through Rushing River Productions, which exists, as you said, to bring light into the darkness. Our first film is Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. This is our answer to the global surge of antisemitism. It is not simply a documentary examining what happened on October 7. Rather, it reveals what has happened in the wake of October 7: a dramatic surge in the evil of antisemitism.
John Riley: We are going to talk about this rise in antisemitism and why you believe it is happening around the world, especially here in the United States. We are speaking with Levi Hazen, executive producer and host of Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege.
John Riley: Levi, I was watching this film, and my heart was deeply moved by the stories you share from Israel about those affected by what happened on October 7, 2023. I want everyone to know that they need to see this documentary. They are not going to see a lot of graphic material. What they will see is the truth about what happened in Israel and how we can try to make sense of it spiritually, biblically, and in many other ways. You really need to see this film to combat all the deceptive lies out there. You can learn more at lifeinmessiah.org. It is streaming on several platforms, including Amazon and Apple TV. Levi, when you were in Israel, you interviewed some incredible people and heard their stories. Tell us about some of the stories you encountered there in the aftermath of October 7, 2023.
Levi Hazen: Some of the interviews, John, were emotionally heartbreaking. I sat there trying to process with people who had just undergone extreme trauma. We conducted these interviews six to eight months after the events. I spoke with Noam Ben David, for example, who had been shot in the hip and hid in a trash compactor from Hamas terrorists. I spoke with a mother of several children who lost
Levi Hazen: her husband while he was fighting Hamas in the Gaza Strip. One of our interviews was with a young man named Shalev. He was at the Nova Music Festival and ran from Hamas terrorists through the desert for hours. He reached a home where the resident was speaking Arabic. As a Jewish Israeli, he must have wondered whether this person could be trusted or whether he would turn him over to the terrorists. The reality is that this particular man could be trusted. More than 2 million Arab citizens live in Israel, as you know, John, and there are generally strong relationships between Jewish Israelis and Arab Israelis. This Muslim Arab citizen of Israel hid several Jewish people in his home when Hamas terrorists came knocking.
Levi Hazen: He risked his family’s life to hide these Jewish people from Hamas. It was absolutely incredible. The last time we heard stories like this was during World War II, when some faithful German people hid Jewish people from the Nazis. That is the kind of story Shalev told us. Shalev has since had a chance to go back and thank this man. On a separate trip to Israel, I happened to meet him, and I thanked him for his love and care for people. Those are the kinds of interviews we conducted for this film. So you are exactly right: this is not about showing graphic material. It is about wrestling with human emotion, the evil perpetrated that day and afterward, and especially the biblical point of view. Where was God on October 7? What are His plans and purposes for Israel? Those are the questions we wrestle with.
John Riley: We are going to wrestle with some of those questions in just a moment. As you were conducting those interviews in Israel, Levi, what happened to you emotionally and spiritually as you spoke with all of those people in the aftermath of October 7, 2023?
Levi Hazen: Honestly, I came home from that trip and had to decompress. For many people, October 7 may feel like something that happened years ago and has largely been put on the shelf and forgotten. But for the people of Israel—and Jewish people worldwide—it is still an open wound. The rising antisemitism among the nations, along with the general silence of the church, continues to intensify that trauma. It is not a wound that has healed. It is an exposed wound that continues to bleed and fester. Only the love of God and a biblical point of view can help heal this wound. That is why we are so passionate about educating, equipping, and encouraging our fellow brothers and sisters to love their Jewish neighbors, reach out to their Jewish friends, and speak out against antisemitism.
John Riley: You have to see this documentary, Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. You can learn more at lifeinmessiah.org. We are talking with Levi Hazen, director of Life in Messiah and executive producer and host of Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. You mentioned the spiritual realities surrounding October 7 and the incredible rise in hatred toward Jewish people and the biblical state of Israel. Why has that happened? I know there is a spiritual dimension, but share your heart on why you see this rise in Jew-hatred. We call it antisemitism, but it is really demonic hatred toward Jewish people.
Levi Hazen: You can study people throughout the Bible who opposed the Jewish people, John. Start with Pharaoh, who quickly escalated from, “Let’s oppress them; they are becoming too numerous,” to, “Let’s kill them. Let’s kill all the Hebrew babies who are born.” Then you come to King Balak, who hired Balaam. He feared Israel for no reason and said, “Come and curse them, or something may happen.”
Levi Hazen: Then you come to Haman, who looked at one Jewish man, Mordecai, and said, “Those people are different. They are not following our laws. We need to wipe them all out.” You also see Sanballat the Horonite, who opposed the rebuilding of Jerusalem and later tried to attack the Jewish people. Scripture contains example after example of nations and individuals opposing the Jewish people, and it only causes harm. Even from a biblical point of view, antisemitism is a concern for everyone in the nation where it occurs. My fellow American citizens should be very concerned about the rise of antisemitism in this country because it has the potential to bring down our entire nation. It indicates that a dark spiritual evil has taken hold in society, and we need to stand up and push back against it. Antisemitism is a spiritual problem more than a social, economic, or political problem. It has deep spiritual roots. When I first arrived at Columbia University to work on the film, people were chanting for the downfall of Israel. They were saying things like, “Brick by brick, Israel will fall,” and, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”—all the typical slogans.
Levi Hazen: I remember walking up and feeling as though I had encountered a wall of spiritual darkness. We do not show this in the film, but I raised my hands and began praying over the crowd. I did not know what else to do. I am not typically charismatic by nature, but I do know how to pray. I prayed because I sensed that this was, above all else, a spiritual battle. I describe this as Israel’s eighth front. Israel is currently fighting on about seven different fronts when you consider Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, Yemen, and others. But the eighth front cannot be destroyed with a missile, nor can Mossad isolate it through intelligence. The eighth front is the battle for the hearts and minds of the nations concerning antisemitism. The church should be a counter-front; it should never be a front that Israel has to fight against. My question for my brothers and sisters in the Lord is: Where are you on this front? If you feel like you are in a battle, it is because you already are. I think Jewish people—and perhaps the Lord—are asking whether anyone is going to say or do something this time. Our Jewish friends are rightly questioning whether that will happen. The pastor of our local church wrote a letter to a synagogue in my community. He said, “I want you to know that we stand against this rising tide of antisemitism. We love the Jewish people and recognize their rights.” He showed me the woman’s response from the synagogue. I was pleased that she thanked him for his concern and asked whether he would like to meet for coffee. But the part that really got to me, John, was when she said, “You are the only person who has reached out to us.” By then, it had already been about a year since October 7. My question is: What in the world are we doing? Surely we could be doing more to oppose this rise in antisemitism.
Levi Hazen: You are probably familiar with one of the most famous quotations to come out of the Holocaust, from Pastor Martin Niemöller. He said, in effect, “First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist, so I did not speak up. Then they came for the trade unionists, but I was not a trade unionist, so I did not speak up. Then they came for others, and I did not speak up. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not Jewish, so I did not speak up. Finally, they came for me, and there was no one left to speak up.” At what point will we begin to
Levi Hazen: see major action from Christians who love their Jewish friends, share the gospel with them, and stop absorbing all the garbage you mentioned, John? I know exactly which podcasters you mean. They are displaying what has historically been called parlor antisemitism, and that is what is affecting the United States right now. Parlor antisemitism is not the kind that directly encourages people to take up weapons and murder their Jewish neighbors, as once happened frequently. It comes from people with influence—people who may dress well and belong to the wealthier levels of society—who use their words to create disdain for Jewish people and Israel. They use podcast or television platforms to raise questions about Jewish loyalty to the United States or to suggest that Israel controls America. They say, “I’m just asking questions.” That is parlor antisemitism. They can get away with it because they are not directly advocating violence, but they are stirring up the masses, who may then carry out the violence.
Levi Hazen: This is nothing new. It is as old as the enemy, and it is one of the enemy’s tricks. Ultimately, those responsible will be held accountable by God. As Christians, we should pray against it and have no part in it.
John Riley: That's Levi Hazen, Director of Life in Messiah, founded rural Rushing River Films on executive producer of, Shadows, The Shadows of October Israel under siege. You've got to see this. You need to go to life at Messiah Life in Messiah dot org. It's streaming, on a number of different platforms. you can Amazon, Apple tv, that's on all the different places such as that. You have to see this. And, I want to encourage everyone listening to this edition of Middle East Report. Don't Remain silent in the midst of all this hate and horror that is happening to Jewish People
John Riley: We have to stand up.
John Riley: And that is not impossible to do. You help people do that.
Levi Hazen: History will remember those who spread hatred toward the Jewish people, but it will also remember the pulpits that had a voice and chose not to use it. I hope pastors and ministry leaders heed your call. They need to stop trying to straddle the line in order to be politically correct. We are past that point. Now is the time. You are in the battle. Choose this day whom you will serve. Long ago, God told Abraham, “Go from your house to the land that I will show you.”
Levi Hazen: God promised land, descendants, and blessing. Four thousand years have passed, and it has been quite a journey. Whatever God loves, Satan hates. For millennia, antisemitism has followed the Jewish people like
Levi Hazen: a very dark shadow. The nations of the earth will never fully discern reality until they understand God’s heart for the Jewish people and their unique journey through history. All eyes are on the house of Israel.
Speaker C: Are you watching every word they say? This is about the end of Israel. It is not just a physical war; it is a spiritual war. October 7 was a demonic terror attack. This is not war—it is the killing of children. We saw things we had never seen before. It is demonic. During the first Holocaust, the church was silent. Enough is enough. I call this the second Holocaust. The church will not be silent. We will stand for the truth.
Levi Hazen: We must not turn away from the Jewish people in their hour of need.
Levi Hazen: Scripture tells us, “Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God. These are not merely ancient words with no relevance today. They are a call for compassion.
John Riley: We can do more, and that is what Life in Messiah is about: helping you do more. I encourage everyone—especially every pastor listening to this edition of the Middle East Report—to visit lifeinmessiah.org and watch Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. Pastors, you need to see it and inform your congregations about it. Be informed, and then share it with others. Do not believe or participate in the deception and lies that are out there. Levi, thank you for joining us on this edition of the Middle East Report, and thank you for what you are doing to get the message out. We have discussed some very difficult subjects today, but the message is clear: we should not remain silent. We need to stand up.
Speaker C: We dedicate today’s show to Jewish people in Israel and around the world who have suffered so much since the October 7, 2023 massacre and who continue to suffer under the onslaught of antisemitism. What are we going to do as believers and as the church? Today’s edition of the Middle East Report offers practical and spiritual reasons why we need to respond. One thing you can do is watch Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. Visit lifeinmessiah.org to learn where it is streaming. It is available on platforms including Amazon Prime and Apple TV. If you love the Lord and His Word, remember that we owe a great debt of gratitude to the Jewish people because they gave us the Messiah—Yeshua, Jesus—and the Word of God. Stand with the Jewish people. Learn more at lifeinmessiah.org. Listen to the podcast at heyfar.net or wherever you get your podcasts. Search for The Middle East Report, and email me your questions or comments at middleeastfr.net. Thanks for joining us.
John Riley: Welcome to the Middle East Report, your connection to Israel and its people, places, and land. Each week, we break through the lies and deception of the news media, social media, and misleading podcasters to give you the truth about what is actually happening on the ground. For those of us in the United States, October 7, which is coming up very soon as I record this, may be just another day on the calendar. But if you are a Jewish person anywhere in the world, especially someone living in Israel, October 7 is a day you will never forget. We will talk more about that in this edition of the Middle East Report. On October 7, 2023, terrorists attacked Jewish people and others in what has been described as the most horrible slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. This show is dedicated to bringing you the truth and standing with the Jewish people. Levi Hazen is our guest on this edition of the Middle East Report. He is the host of the TŌV Podcast, a teaching ministry that brings a biblical point of view on Israel, eschatology, and ministry to the Jewish people.
He is the director of Life in Messiah and the founder of Rushing River Productions. He is also the executive producer and host of the incredible investigative documentary Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. Levi Hazen, it is good to have you with us on this edition of the Middle East Report.
Levi Hazen: Thanks for having me, John. I’m looking forward to our conversation.
John Riley: Levi, I mentioned the date October 7, 2023, and the slaughter that happened in Israel on that day. We will be marking that date very soon. In a moment, we are going to talk about it in more detail. We are also going to discuss the investigative documentary Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege that your team produced. But before we do that, tell everyone about Life in Messiah and Rushing River Productions.
Levi Hazen: Absolutely. Life in Messiah exists to share the gospel with our Jewish friends around the world. We have staff in nine countries, and for about 140 years God has faithfully sustained this ministry because of His heart and faithfulness toward His people—whether they are in Israel, the United States, or elsewhere. At Life in Messiah, we actively share the gospel, teach a biblical position that keeps Israel in the Bible and recognizes the Jewish people as distinct, and stand against antisemitism. Our staff do this online and in person. We operate soup kitchens in Israel, meet regularly with Jewish people over coffee, fill pulpits, and teach in classrooms. People can learn more about the ministry and what God is doing through the work by visiting lifeinmessiah.org.
John Riley: And you have this powerful film production company called Rushing River Productions. It is focused on creating films that bring light into a very dark world. Levi, you have certainly done that by creating an incredible investigative documentary, Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. It examines what happened in Israel on October 7, 2023, and what has happened since that date.
John Riley: Let’s start right there. Some people may not know what happened on October 7, 2023. Not everyone remembers that day. Tell us about it, and then let’s get into the film your team created.
Levi Hazen: On the morning of October 7, 2023, people here in the United States woke up to reports that there had been an attack on Israel. That, in itself, is nothing new. Israel is used to experiencing terrorist attacks, missiles, and other threats from hostile neighbors. But this attack was different. Hamas terrorists, who are very open about their desire to eradicate not just Israelis but Jewish people around the globe, broke through Israel’s borders and slaughtered innocent civilians across multiple communities. They did not go after soldiers or other armed combatants. They went after women, husbands, and children. On October 7, 2023, we woke up to absolutely horrific reports of unspeakable things, John—things I will not even mention on air—that had been done to Jewish people. It was absolutely shocking because of the horrific
Levi Hazen: nature of it. Hamas had body cameras, so they filmed the whole thing. You could hear how joyful they were as they murdered and pillaged their victims. Thankfully, the Israel Defense Forces came to the rescue, but only after great harm had already been done and more than 200 hostages had been taken back to the terror tunnels in the Gaza Strip. Then, of course, war ensued. Aside from the shock of that event, John, what was also shocking was that just a day later, people were already in the streets and on college campuses calling for the downfall of Israel. In the immediate wake of the greatest massacre since the Holocaust, something had been opened up, John. I cannot see exactly what happened in the spiritual realm, but something was unleashed that day, and unfortunately, it has not been put back in the box. October 7 was an attack on Israel, but what happened afterward revealed something about the rest of the world. I think we now know that antisemitism never went away after World War II. It has been simmering beneath the surface, waiting for an opportunity to rear its ugly head.
Levi Hazen: When we saw the campus protests and heard people calling Israel a genocidal terrorist state, we decided to take action because that is who we are as a ministry. We have been called to this. We took our cameras to Columbia University because we wanted to stand with the Jewish people there and talk to some of the students on campus to find out what they really knew. Of course, it turned out that they did not know much. After interviewing students and others on college campuses, we took our cameras to Israel. We interviewed survivors of Hamas’s attack on the Nova Music Festival, along with Arab Israelis, soldiers, pastors, and others. That is the story of this film and why we produced it through Rushing River Productions, which exists, as you said, to bring light into the darkness. Our first film is Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. This is our answer to the global surge of antisemitism. It is not simply a documentary examining what happened on October 7. Rather, it reveals what has happened in the wake of October 7: a dramatic surge in the evil of antisemitism.
John Riley: We are going to talk about this rise in antisemitism and why you believe it is happening around the world, especially here in the United States. We are speaking with Levi Hazen, executive producer and host of Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege.
John Riley: Levi, I was watching this film, and my heart was deeply moved by the stories you share from Israel about those affected by what happened on October 7, 2023. I want everyone to know that they need to see this documentary. They are not going to see a lot of graphic material. What they will see is the truth about what happened in Israel and how we can try to make sense of it spiritually, biblically, and in many other ways. You really need to see this film to combat all the deceptive lies out there. You can learn more at lifeinmessiah.org. It is streaming on several platforms, including Amazon and Apple TV. Levi, when you were in Israel, you interviewed some incredible people and heard their stories. Tell us about some of the stories you encountered there in the aftermath of October 7, 2023.
Levi Hazen: Some of the interviews, John, were emotionally heartbreaking. I sat there trying to process with people who had just undergone extreme trauma. We conducted these interviews six to eight months after the events. I spoke with Noam Ben David, for example, who had been shot in the hip and hid in a trash compactor from Hamas terrorists. I spoke with a mother of several children who lost
Levi Hazen: her husband while he was fighting Hamas in the Gaza Strip. One of our interviews was with a young man named Shalev. He was at the Nova Music Festival and ran from Hamas terrorists through the desert for hours. He reached a home where the resident was speaking Arabic. As a Jewish Israeli, he must have wondered whether this person could be trusted or whether he would turn him over to the terrorists. The reality is that this particular man could be trusted. More than 2 million Arab citizens live in Israel, as you know, John, and there are generally strong relationships between Jewish Israelis and Arab Israelis. This Muslim Arab citizen of Israel hid several Jewish people in his home when Hamas terrorists came knocking.
Levi Hazen: He risked his family’s life to hide these Jewish people from Hamas. It was absolutely incredible. The last time we heard stories like this was during World War II, when some faithful German people hid Jewish people from the Nazis. That is the kind of story Shalev told us. Shalev has since had a chance to go back and thank this man. On a separate trip to Israel, I happened to meet him, and I thanked him for his love and care for people. Those are the kinds of interviews we conducted for this film. So you are exactly right: this is not about showing graphic material. It is about wrestling with human emotion, the evil perpetrated that day and afterward, and especially the biblical point of view. Where was God on October 7? What are His plans and purposes for Israel? Those are the questions we wrestle with.
John Riley: We are going to wrestle with some of those questions in just a moment. As you were conducting those interviews in Israel, Levi, what happened to you emotionally and spiritually as you spoke with all of those people in the aftermath of October 7, 2023?
Levi Hazen: Honestly, I came home from that trip and had to decompress. For many people, October 7 may feel like something that happened years ago and has largely been put on the shelf and forgotten. But for the people of Israel—and Jewish people worldwide—it is still an open wound. The rising antisemitism among the nations, along with the general silence of the church, continues to intensify that trauma. It is not a wound that has healed. It is an exposed wound that continues to bleed and fester. Only the love of God and a biblical point of view can help heal this wound. That is why we are so passionate about educating, equipping, and encouraging our fellow brothers and sisters to love their Jewish neighbors, reach out to their Jewish friends, and speak out against antisemitism.
John Riley: You have to see this documentary, Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. You can learn more at lifeinmessiah.org. We are talking with Levi Hazen, director of Life in Messiah and executive producer and host of Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. You mentioned the spiritual realities surrounding October 7 and the incredible rise in hatred toward Jewish people and the biblical state of Israel. Why has that happened? I know there is a spiritual dimension, but share your heart on why you see this rise in Jew-hatred. We call it antisemitism, but it is really demonic hatred toward Jewish people.
Levi Hazen: You can study people throughout the Bible who opposed the Jewish people, John. Start with Pharaoh, who quickly escalated from, “Let’s oppress them; they are becoming too numerous,” to, “Let’s kill them. Let’s kill all the Hebrew babies who are born.” Then you come to King Balak, who hired Balaam. He feared Israel for no reason and said, “Come and curse them, or something may happen.”
Levi Hazen: Then you come to Haman, who looked at one Jewish man, Mordecai, and said, “Those people are different. They are not following our laws. We need to wipe them all out.” You also see Sanballat the Horonite, who opposed the rebuilding of Jerusalem and later tried to attack the Jewish people. Scripture contains example after example of nations and individuals opposing the Jewish people, and it only causes harm. Even from a biblical point of view, antisemitism is a concern for everyone in the nation where it occurs. My fellow American citizens should be very concerned about the rise of antisemitism in this country because it has the potential to bring down our entire nation. It indicates that a dark spiritual evil has taken hold in society, and we need to stand up and push back against it. Antisemitism is a spiritual problem more than a social, economic, or political problem. It has deep spiritual roots. When I first arrived at Columbia University to work on the film, people were chanting for the downfall of Israel. They were saying things like, “Brick by brick, Israel will fall,” and, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”—all the typical slogans.
Levi Hazen: I remember walking up and feeling as though I had encountered a wall of spiritual darkness. We do not show this in the film, but I raised my hands and began praying over the crowd. I did not know what else to do. I am not typically charismatic by nature, but I do know how to pray. I prayed because I sensed that this was, above all else, a spiritual battle. I describe this as Israel’s eighth front. Israel is currently fighting on about seven different fronts when you consider Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, Yemen, and others. But the eighth front cannot be destroyed with a missile, nor can Mossad isolate it through intelligence. The eighth front is the battle for the hearts and minds of the nations concerning antisemitism. The church should be a counter-front; it should never be a front that Israel has to fight against. My question for my brothers and sisters in the Lord is: Where are you on this front? If you feel like you are in a battle, it is because you already are. I think Jewish people—and perhaps the Lord—are asking whether anyone is going to say or do something this time. Our Jewish friends are rightly questioning whether that will happen. The pastor of our local church wrote a letter to a synagogue in my community. He said, “I want you to know that we stand against this rising tide of antisemitism. We love the Jewish people and recognize their rights.” He showed me the woman’s response from the synagogue. I was pleased that she thanked him for his concern and asked whether he would like to meet for coffee. But the part that really got to me, John, was when she said, “You are the only person who has reached out to us.” By then, it had already been about a year since October 7. My question is: What in the world are we doing? Surely we could be doing more to oppose this rise in antisemitism.
Levi Hazen: You are probably familiar with one of the most famous quotations to come out of the Holocaust, from Pastor Martin Niemöller. He said, in effect, “First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist, so I did not speak up. Then they came for the trade unionists, but I was not a trade unionist, so I did not speak up. Then they came for others, and I did not speak up. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not Jewish, so I did not speak up. Finally, they came for me, and there was no one left to speak up.” At what point will we begin to
Levi Hazen: see major action from Christians who love their Jewish friends, share the gospel with them, and stop absorbing all the garbage you mentioned, John? I know exactly which podcasters you mean. They are displaying what has historically been called parlor antisemitism, and that is what is affecting the United States right now. Parlor antisemitism is not the kind that directly encourages people to take up weapons and murder their Jewish neighbors, as once happened frequently. It comes from people with influence—people who may dress well and belong to the wealthier levels of society—who use their words to create disdain for Jewish people and Israel. They use podcast or television platforms to raise questions about Jewish loyalty to the United States or to suggest that Israel controls America. They say, “I’m just asking questions.” That is parlor antisemitism. They can get away with it because they are not directly advocating violence, but they are stirring up the masses, who may then carry out the violence.
Levi Hazen: This is nothing new. It is as old as the enemy, and it is one of the enemy’s tricks. Ultimately, those responsible will be held accountable by God. As Christians, we should pray against it and have no part in it.
John Riley: That's Levi Hazen, Director of Life in Messiah, founded rural Rushing River Films on executive producer of, Shadows, The Shadows of October Israel under siege. You've got to see this. You need to go to life at Messiah Life in Messiah dot org. It's streaming, on a number of different platforms. you can Amazon, Apple tv, that's on all the different places such as that. You have to see this. And, I want to encourage everyone listening to this edition of Middle East Report. Don't Remain silent in the midst of all this hate and horror that is happening to Jewish People
John Riley: We have to stand up.
John Riley: And that is not impossible to do. You help people do that.
Levi Hazen: History will remember those who spread hatred toward the Jewish people, but it will also remember the pulpits that had a voice and chose not to use it. I hope pastors and ministry leaders heed your call. They need to stop trying to straddle the line in order to be politically correct. We are past that point. Now is the time. You are in the battle. Choose this day whom you will serve. Long ago, God told Abraham, “Go from your house to the land that I will show you.”
Levi Hazen: God promised land, descendants, and blessing. Four thousand years have passed, and it has been quite a journey. Whatever God loves, Satan hates. For millennia, antisemitism has followed the Jewish people like
Levi Hazen: a very dark shadow. The nations of the earth will never fully discern reality until they understand God’s heart for the Jewish people and their unique journey through history. All eyes are on the house of Israel.
Speaker C: Are you watching every word they say? This is about the end of Israel. It is not just a physical war; it is a spiritual war. October 7 was a demonic terror attack. This is not war—it is the killing of children. We saw things we had never seen before. It is demonic. During the first Holocaust, the church was silent. Enough is enough. I call this the second Holocaust. The church will not be silent. We will stand for the truth.
Levi Hazen: We must not turn away from the Jewish people in their hour of need.
Levi Hazen: Scripture tells us, “Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God. These are not merely ancient words with no relevance today. They are a call for compassion.
John Riley: We can do more, and that is what Life in Messiah is about: helping you do more. I encourage everyone—especially every pastor listening to this edition of the Middle East Report—to visit lifeinmessiah.org and watch Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. Pastors, you need to see it and inform your congregations about it. Be informed, and then share it with others. Do not believe or participate in the deception and lies that are out there. Levi, thank you for joining us on this edition of the Middle East Report, and thank you for what you are doing to get the message out. We have discussed some very difficult subjects today, but the message is clear: we should not remain silent. We need to stand up.
Speaker C: We dedicate today’s show to Jewish people in Israel and around the world who have suffered so much since the October 7, 2023 massacre and who continue to suffer under the onslaught of antisemitism. What are we going to do as believers and as the church? Today’s edition of the Middle East Report offers practical and spiritual reasons why we need to respond. One thing you can do is watch Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege. Visit lifeinmessiah.org to learn where it is streaming. It is available on platforms including Amazon Prime and Apple TV. If you love the Lord and His Word, remember that we owe a great debt of gratitude to the Jewish people because they gave us the Messiah—Yeshua, Jesus—and the Word of God. Stand with the Jewish people. Learn more at lifeinmessiah.org. Listen to the podcast at heyfar.net or wherever you get your podcasts. Search for The Middle East Report, and email me your questions or comments at middleeastfr.net. Thanks for joining us.
John Riley speaks with Levi Hazen of Life in Messiah and Rushing River Productions about Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege, the October 7, 2023 attacks, survivor stories, the rise of antisemitism, and the church’s responsibility to speak truth and stand with the Jewish people.
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