God literally put His name there

God has chosen to put His name on one particular place on the face of the earth. That place is the apple of God’s eye (Zechariah 2:8 ESV). That place is Jerusalem, the most disputed plot of ground on the planet. During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times.

You might wonder why such a small piece of land that has no natural wealth to offer has been fought over so many times. I believe it’s because God declared Jerusalem as His own and Satan wants to take it away from God so that Satan can put his own name there.

Yet I have chosen Jerusalem, that My name may be there, and I have chosen David to be over My people Israel.
2 Chronicles 6:6

What I find really fascinating is how God actually put His name there… literally. To understand how He did this, you need to know a little bit about the Hebrew alphabet and the geography of Jerusalem.

The letter Shin and the geography of Jerusalem

You see, the 21st letter in the Hebrew alphabet is called Shin (pronounced "Sheen"). The ancient Hebrews chose this letter to represent the name of the one true God. The Shin is shaped much like the English letter W.

The old biblical map of Jerusalem shows three significant valleys: Kidron, Hinnom, and Tyropoean. These valleys converge just south of the Old City of Jerusalem to form the shape of the letter Shin.

Isn’t it fascinating how God put His name on the city of Jerusalem in a way that only a sovereign and all-powerful God could? I think so.

Satan wants to put his name there

To emphasize the point that Satan wants to claim (or destroy) all that belongs to God, during the tribulation, the Antichrist (the man who Satan gives his power to) will declare himself to be god. Can you guess where? That’s right, from the Jewish temple that will be rebuilt in Jerusalem.

Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 (ESV)

I’ve read to the end of the book, so I know how this story ends. God wins!

Related topics

Twelve ways to identify the Antichrist
The abomination that causes desolation
Final 7 years: How we can know when the tribulation has begun

References

Wikipedia: Jerusalem
YouTube: Jerusalem - I Will Put My Name There - Amazing Revelations