Yehonatan Ben Israel, at The Blogs

Yehonatan Ben Israel

Oct 13, 2026, 5:44 PM

Fighting for Life or Fighting for Ashes?

"An evil man will burn his own nation to the ground in order to be king over the ashes..." It's been about three years since October 7th. As I sit here reflecting over all that has transpired, and the reasons...

May 18, 2026, 8:25 PM

Training in a Religious Combat Unit with the IDF

"Remember Hashem your God for it is He who gives you strength to fight..." ~Devarim 8:18 “Strive to be a warrior and a scholar. Be forged by fire and tempered by knowledge. If not, you will lack the courage to...

Jun 6, 2025, 7:54 AM

Mashiach and a Byzantine General: A Lesson

"For not by numbers of men, nor by measure of body, but by measure of soul is the war to be decided." ~Flavius Belisarius What was so special about Belisarius was that he accepted the bargain. Doing the right thing...

Oct 11, 2023, 5:16 PM

Israel, Gaza and Sun Tzu: Lesson to Learn

"When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard." --Sun Tzu, The Art of War Well guys, here we are. I'm writing this blog during the war with Hamas in Gaza. Thanks...

Aug 21, 2023, 12:24 AM

The Iron Courage of the Tribe of Gad

"Forward, for God's sake, forward!"~Final words of US Corps Commander John Reynolds "Courage is the first of human qualities, because it is the quality which guarantees the others." ~Aristotle "All of my life I have looked for death on the battlefield,...

Apr 17, 2023, 7:30 AM

The Prophet Hosea: An Ancient and Modern Warning

What has been, will be. ~Ecclesiastes 1:9 Pleasures after a certain limit are but punishments. ~Marcus Aurelius "Blow the great shofar for our ultimate redemption, and raise a banner to gather our exiles, and gather us together from the four corners...

Jan 24, 2023, 11:34 PM

The Hidden Holiness of Tel Megido

"See, I have taught you decrees and ordinances, as Hashem my God, has commanded me, to do so in the midst of the land to which you come to possess it. You shall safeguard them and perform them, for...

May 2, 2022, 4:50 PM

The Deception of the Abraham Accords

"And Laban said to Jacob, 'Here is this mound, and here is the monument which I have cast between me and you. This mound shall be a witness that I may not cross over to you past this mound,...

Feb 28, 2022, 11:49 PM

Purim: Oneness in the Confusion?

"You wanted to know what gave me so much drive... It was you. You put me in that brothel (When I was a child). You cut me on the streets. I am here now, because of you. You created...

Nov 4, 2021, 2:07 AM

To Love like Avraham Avinu Pt. 3

(Language Advisory for above video) "Someone needs our help." "Why? Is he sick?" "No, worse! He's discouraged!" --From the film, It's a Wonderful Life. Back in 2014, I was getting ready for Aliyah. I had all my paper work together, and if I'm not...

About Me

Yehonatan was born in Dover, Tennessee, US. After converting to Judaism under the conservative movement, he made Aliyah, and converted again in Jerusalem under the Israeli Rabbanut at Machon Meir. He lives Kiryat Arba, and currently serves in a religious combat reservist unit in the IDF.