On Eagles’ Wings

You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. — Exodus 19:4

One of the greatest privileges I have at The Fellowship is welcoming Jewish Ethiopian immigrants to Israel. Their arrival is truly the fulfillment of biblical prophecy. Let me explain. These Ethiopian Jews are considered the remnant of the lost tribe of Dan. In the Book of Isaiah, God promised to bring His people back to Israel from “the four quarters of the earth” (11:12), and He has. What we are seeing in our lifetime is what the prophets saw thousands of years ago!

The mass ingathering of exiles began with the declaration of the state of Israel in 1948. In 1949, Israel launched a daring mission to rescue 49,000 Jews from Arab countries where they suffered persecution. Many of these Jews had never seen airplanes before, and when they boarded the flights that would take them to Israel, they were sure that they were being rescued on eagles’ wings, as prophesied in the Book of Isaiah: “They will soar on wings like eagles” (Isaiah 40:31). As a result, this mission went down in history as “Operation Wings of Eagles.”

In this week’s Torah reading, we learn that the ancient Israelites were rescued “on eagles’ wings,” too. God said, “You yourselves have seen… how I carried you on eagles’ wings…” However, the children of Israel certainly didn’t fly on airplanes, so what did God mean?

The Jewish sages explain that all other birds carry their young in their claws because they are afraid of high-flying predators that soar above them. However, no bird flies higher than the eagle. The eagle only has to worry about men below. The eagle puts its young on its wings, thereby placing itself between its young and any danger. If anyone wants to take a shot from below, they first must deal with the eagle.

Like an eagle, no one is higher than God. And like an eagle, God lovingly protects His children from harm. From biblical times until today, God saves His children from danger and carries them safely home “on wings of eagles”—with miracles, compassion, and love.

Friends, we are living in amazing times. Every prophecy is coming to fruition, and we are fortunate to not only see them, but to be a part of them, too.

•Unless otherwise noted, all Bible verses in this plan are from the New International Version (NIV).