The Biblical Meaning of Israel's Anti-Hamas Operation, "Pillar of Cloud"
11/20/2012 21:15
To English speakers, the name of Israel's anti-Hamas campaign sounds pretty straightforward: "Operation Pillar of Defense."
But reading the name of the Israeli operation in Hebrew might provoke some head-scratching. In Hebrew, the Israel Defense Forces have branded their recently launched anti-Hamas effort as "Operation Pillar of Cloud."
An IDF spokesman explained that most Israelis would recognize "Pillar of Cloud" as a biblical reference.
"It's based on the pillar of cloud that accompanied the the nation of Israel during the Exodus as they left Egypt and traveling toward Israel," said Eytan Buchman, head of the North American media desk for the IDF.
"They wanted the protection from the troubles of the desert, from robbers and people that would attack them and from snakes and scorpions."
Buchman said the anti-Hamas operation's Hebrew name is meant to send the message that it is a defensive maneuver.
"We are coming up on a decade of rockets being fired indiscriminately at civilians," Buchman said, referring to Hamas' actions in southern Israel. The Jewish state's current military operation, he said, "is a proverbial cloud that is coming to protect you."
The Bible's first reference to a cloud pillar comes in Exodus 14, which describes the Israelites' flight from bondage, culminating in Moses' parting of the Red Sea.
"The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them," reads the passage in the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible.
"It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel," the passage continues. "And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night." UCN