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EVERYONE KNOWS ABOUT the
dispute over the area of land at the eastern end of the Mediterranean
that today is called Israel. This is a problem that affects the whole of
the Middle East. In fact, the problem affects the whole world and is
probably the most serious international problem at the present time. I
say that because it has the potential to cause world war. Not that this
is a new problem - this land has been argued and fought over for the
best part of 4,000 years, if not longer.
If you look back into history, you will find that a succession of
peoples have occupied the land. I'm primarily referring to the southern
part of the area that is now called Israel. A great many of these powers
ruled from other countries. Examples in this category from long ago are
Egypt, the Hittites, Babylon, Persia and Greece but other ancient
nations also held the land for short periods. The Jews held it
independently for 1,000 years and there has been a Jewish population
there for much longer than that. The number of Jews have varied but the
period is around 3,500 years in total.
Nations like the Romans have also conquered the land and Israel
subsequently became Christian for 300 years. Then Arabs took control
until a thousand years ago when the Crusades began which in turn lasted
for 200 years. Britain was involved at that time as she has been since
and still is in other ways but not without intervals of conquest by
Mamelukes and Ottoman Turks. Many countries have been involved but the
object of interest is this same piece of land called Israel.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Looking at the history of
the area in overview, there are several ways of trying to make sense of
the situation. Many nations and peoples have been involved in the land
of Israel. This means that many claims to the land could be put forward
- but who is to decide how far back to go? Sometimes this can get very
far fetched indeed - some people even claim to be the descendants of the
Canaanites in an attempt to predate the Jews! The Canaanites were a
collection of primitive city-states that occupied Canaan and passed off
the scene some 3,500 years ago.
This prompts the obvious question - how many countries are inhabited by
their original peoples? England, the country I live in certainly isn't,
at least the original ones are in a minority here, as are the original
Indian tribes in North America. Anyway, what do we mean by ‘original
peoples’ in this context? Who really knows? The point is that, if you
start trying to change the status quo, you run into all kinds of
problems and inconsistencies.
The next point is that, because there has been so much outside meddling
in the land of Israel, the country has been self-governed for only 1,000
years - by the Jewish nations of long ago and today. Only the Jews have
been self-governing in the land for a sustained period of time. That may
come as a surprise. Another factor is that some believe race to be of
lesser importance than religion. There are three religions each with a
claim to the land. In order of introduction, the Jewish faith came first
with Christianity developing out of it. Lastly, Islam was introduced
from Arabia.
The other point we should mention is that the Jews have now transformed
a neglected land into something quite remarkable. They have greatly
improved the conditions under which people live and this includes Arabs
living in the State of Israel. One example of this is the number of
infant deaths. Israel's occupation of Gaza and the West Bank reduced
infant deaths to a fifth of what they were under Arab rule.
Let us now look at the problem from two perspectives - firstly to
examine the religious viewpoint and secondly to review recent history
and current events. If you are an orthodox Jew, your religion is Judaism
and your authority is the Old Testament. If you are a practising
Christian, the basis of your religious belief is the whole of the Bible
(Old and New Testaments) - so there is a certain affinity here. If you
are a Muslim, your basis is the Koran.
It is not the purpose of this article to discuss which religion is
right. These matters are often dealt with in the pages of ‘Light.’
However, if you are a Christian and accept the Bible, you cannot ignore
what the Bible says about Israel. Does it give us the answer to the
question ‘whose land is it?’ The Christian does not have any choice -
any more than a Jew has. In other words, it is possible to adopt a view
of the problem in Israel, which is in direct conflict with one's faith.
THE PROMISE TO ABRAHAM
What does the Bible say
about whose land this is? God tells us whose it is in the words of a
promise made to Abraham the father of the Jewish race. He repeated it
several times. We read in the book of Genesis that Abraham was told by
God to leave his homeland. He obeyed this instruction and eventually
came to live in the land of Canaan (now Israel) and God made a very long
term promise to him.
‘And Abram passed
through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh.
And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the LORD appeared unto
Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there
builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him’ Genesis
12:6-7.
So God gave Abram or Abraham
as he was later called, a promise of the land. Now, the Moslem might
reply ‘Yes, but we too are descended from Abraham.’ Of course that is
true but read on:
‘And Abraham said unto
God, O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah thy
wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name
Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting
covenant, and with his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have
heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him…But my covenant will I
establish with Isaac…’ Genesis 17:18-21
Ishmael, you may know, was
the other son of Abraham, the son from whom the Arabs are descended. So
God has promised something to the Arabs but the land of Israel He gave
to Isaac and his descendants. It was an everlasting promise, although
there were certain temporary gaps occasioned by the wrongs of the
nation. At such times the majority of Jews left the land as captives.
There were however, small numbers of Jews in the land throughout
history. God always said he would bring Israel back whenever she left
the land. That is the basis of the Jewish claim to the area we know as
Israel.
THE PROMISE REPEATED
If that is not convincing
enough, let us look at a repetition of the promise to Jacob, for God
repeated the promise many times. Genesis chapter 28 shows how the
grandson of Abraham, whose name was Jacob, was given the same promise.
This man is the undisputed founder of the Jewish people, the father of
the twelve tribes of Israel. Jacob was on a journey and he received a
vision from God at a place he afterwards called Bethel (meaning ‘the
house of God’):
‘And he dreamed, and
behold a ladder set up on the earth…And, behold, the LORD stood
above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the
God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it,
and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and
thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the
north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the
families of the earth be blessed.’ Genesis 28:12-14
The same message was
repeated over and over again. Moses repeated it and it was also the
subject of a promise to David which he referred to in one of the Psalms.
‘He hath remembered his
covenant for ever…Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath
unto Isaac; and confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to
Israel for an everlasting covenant: saying, Unto thee will I give
the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance.’ Psalm 105:8-11
THE MESSAGE OF ISRAEL’S
PROPHETS
The Old Testament prophets
spoke of this same promise, a promise that would not be affected by the
suffering of the Jews. They also predicted how it would be achieved.
Take for example the prophet Ezekiel who tells us about the return of
the Jews to their land, 2,500 years in advance:
‘And say unto them, Thus
saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from
among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on
every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them
one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king
shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations,
neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all.’
Ezekiel 37:21-22
You could not wish for a
clearer statement about whose land it really is. It is apparent that
what we have witnessed over the last century goes a long way to
fulfilling this prophecy. The prophet also describes how God will defend
this land. We have already witnessed the unseen hand of God and will see
Him working more openly when the nation's existence is challenged - we
can see that challenge building up now.
THE CURRENT PROBLEM
The international perception
of Israel is not good at the present time. We frequently hear her spoken
of in very critical tones. This is perhaps less so in the United Kingdom
and the USA but even in these countries Israel has her critics. The
situation in Israel is very serious. Israeli-Palestinian discord is such
that it seems impossible for a lasting solution to be found without the
intervention of the Almighty.
The news of late
demonstrates the sheer intransigence of the Palestinians. Israel has
made mistakes but the majority of Palestinians are clearly challenging
Israel's right to exist in any shape or form. It is a view held more
strongly today than at any time since the idea of the State of Israel
was first suggested. In other words, the Palestinians reject the
so-called ‘two state’ solution whereby the State of Israel would coexist
with a Palestinian nation. This has been accepted by many Arab states
including Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
There is an increasing blind acceptance right across the globe that the
Palestinians' challenge is legitimate. This challenge has the strategy
of attempting to refute the right of Israel to be in the land at all. It
condemns her policies and actions. It also masterminds terrorism. The
Palestinians contend that Israel has no historical right to the land.
Although quick to grasp any UN resolution censoring Israel, they do not
accept the solid international agreements on which the State of Israel
was founded. These were not casually concocted by one nation - they were
based on a proper international consensus.
The fact is that Palestine had been the territory of foreign powers for
centuries. At the outbreak of World War I, Palestine was a part of
Turkey. Turkey backed the losing side and this resulted in her losing
the land that is now Israel. As with other boundary issues, the
settlement of what should happen to the land was decided by
international treaty. This placed Palestine under the mandate of
Britain.
THE BALFOUR DECLARATION
First, there was the 1917
Balfour Declaration drawn up when Britain gained the mandate over the
land during the First World War. Extensive consultation was carried out
before this declaration was made. At the same time the Jewish population
of the land was growing. From a human point of view, the idea of the
founding of a Jewish state was largely developed in the late 19th
century by a man named Theodor Herzl who wrote a book called ‘The Jewish
State’.
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Theodor Herzel |
After the Balfour
Declaration, long and detailed consideration was given to a division of
the land between Israel and the Palestinians. For example, a commission
looked into this and reported without bias. This report shows that the
Jews had a legitimate claim to part of the land. Then the UN voted in
favour of partition in 1947. Well, you know what happened after that –
there were four wars because the Arabs chose to ignore the UN. Israel
won all these wars after which some Arab states made peace but others
have not.
The problem is that the Palestinians forget that they never had a state
of their own. Whether we like it or not, the world's boundaries have
been redrawn many times in history. That is why, for example, cities
like Metz and Strasbourg are now part of France whereas before World War
II they were in Germany. Even if one could put the clock back it would
not favour the Palestinians. If national territories are to be debated
in this way, how many nations would escape? Many nations have a weaker
basis than Israel. The enemies of Israel claim ancestry from the
Canaanite peoples driven out by Joshua. They contend that Jews were a
minority in the area and the land was unfairly allotted to them in 1947.
ANTI-SEMITISM
It is abundantly clear that
Israel not only has God's everlasting promise to Abraham in her favour
but also her foundation as a state in 1948 was the result of proper
international processes. However, no matter how reasonable Israel’s
right is, it is contested by a people that have gained international
recognition from many governments. In reality, we see anti-Semitism.
This is as rife as ever and increasing despite all that has happened to
the shame of countries like Germany.
In one sense, God undoubtedly protects His people and has promised that
they will return to their land. The other side of the coin is that the
prophecy through Moses is still being fulfilled: ‘And among these
nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have
rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing
of eyes, and sorrow of mind: and thy life shall hang in doubt before
thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance
of thy life.’ Deuteronomy 28:65-66
So, we have to view the growing international criticism of Israel as
fulfilment of the prophecy about what would happen in the event of God's
law being broken. It is also the case that prophecy shows that this
opposition will reach a climax and the opposition will itself be
destroyed. This is predicted in many places in Scripture. For example
the prophet Joel wrote:
‘For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again
the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations,
and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead
with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have
scattered among the nations, and parted my land…Proclaim ye this among
the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of
war draw near; let them come up: beat your plowshares into swords, and
your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong…The LORD
also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the
heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his
people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know
that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then
shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her
any more.’ Joel 3:1-2, 9-10, 16-17
So you can see that there is significance in the current situation in
the Middle East. There is the will to destroy Israel and it is
spreading. This means that nations are moving in the direction of the
battlefield that will see the intervention of Christ and the fulfilment
of prophecy.
THE REAL SOLUTION
If we ever doubt that Israel
has a future in the land, we should consider the prophecies that show us
the real meaning of an otherwise rather confusing situation. The word of
God takes us beyond the present troubles to a time of world peace. Not
only is trouble mentioned in the Bible, so too is peace for Israel and
the World. The words of Isaiah confirm this:
‘Awake, awake; put on
thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem,
the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the
uncircumcised and the unclean. Shake thyself from the dust; arise,
and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck,
O captive daughter of Zion.’ Isaiah 52:1-2
Then there is mention of a
group of men and women called ‘my people’. This in fact is comprised of
all that obey God's Word:
‘How beautiful upon the
mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that
publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that
publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! Thy
watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they
sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again
Zion. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of
Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed
Jerusalem’ Isaiah 52:7-9.
That then is the ultimate
solution to the troubles in Israel. It is the ultimate answer to the
question - whose land is it ?’ The short answer is - God's land - and He
has given it to the Jews! They have yet to acknowledge their Messiah,
who is Christ - but they will do so when he returns.
CONCLUSION
The future is not just about
peace for Israel. Christ will bring world peace. There is much to
confirm this in the Bible. It will be a time of peace and plenty when
every blessing will be given to those who recognise and obey God, a time
when all ill and trouble will pass. The prophet Isaiah who gives us so
many word pictures of the age to come, sums it up like this:
‘And the work of
righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness
quietness and assurance for ever.’ Isaiah 32:17
What this means for us today
is that we should prepare ourselves to take part in this future time.
The Bible tells us how to do this. It is not hard but it is very
important to each individual. It involves effort on our part but it is
effort that will be very well repaid.
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