And the beat goes on…
The brutal beat of Islamic and Palestinian terrorism; the shameful sound of geopolitical horns blatantly blasting President Trump’s decision for the United States to officially acknowledge Jerusalem as Israel’s eternal capital; the demonstrative drums of war banging threatening messages of Israel’s demise by her sworn enemies; and the raging roar of Muslim rhetoric with convoluted claims that the Jews don’t belong in the sovereign nation of Israel.
Among other derogatory denunciations against President Trump and Israel, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas recently placed a curse on Donald Trump: “May your house be demolished”… presumably referring to the White House. In this same rambling two-hour speech to the PLO, he repeated that the Palestinians will no longer participate in peace negotiations with Israel if the US is involved.
Abbas then refused to meet with US Vice President Mike Pence during Pence’s recent trip to Egypt, Jordan, and Israel. Instead, Abbas flew to Brussels; attempting again to persuade the European Union to unilaterally and arbitrarily declare a Palestinian State in Israel with all of the rewritten history conditions and unrealistic pre-condition demands that the Palestinians have made for years.
The top three of those demands are:
(1) A Palestinian State with pre-1967 (Six-Day War) borders that really weren’t borders in the first place. Rather, they were armistice lines established on a temporary basis—until Israel and the Palestinians could agree on more permanent boundaries including those for Judea/Samaria (so-called West Bank).
In the Six-Day War, Israel reclaimed and liberated ALL of today’s Israel, especially the entire city of Jerusalem. If Israel were to agree to such lines, she would be virtually defenseless in the Jordan Valley, the Golan Heights, and most of Judea/Samaria. If a Palestinian State is created with sovereign borders, Mahmoud Abbas has already boasted that no Jews will be allowed to live in that state. Whereas, many Israeli-Arabs would continue to live in Israel, undoubtedly with visitation rights of Palestinian relatives to/from Israel.
See Eye of Prophecy article: Ethnic Cleansing of Jews … The Real Palestinian Agenda, published 9-17-16.
Consequently, any Israeli excursion into those territories (for example to hunt down a terrorist who had just murdered a Jew) would be considered an act of war. You can bet your life-savings that, under those conditions, the Palestinians would never agree to prosecute and certainly not extradite the offender to Israel. But the biggest concern for Israel would be rogue nations like Iran gaining a foothold in a Palestinian State as a safe sanctuary to wreak havoc on Israel.
(2) East Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian State. This is unthinkable and unfeasible. It would be similar to the former West and East Berlin dichotomy which was a disaster, one that came perilously close to war between the United States and the former Soviet Union.
There is only one city in the entire world that is claimed by two countries as their capital. The Republic of Cyprus (southern half) and North Cyprus share Nicosia as their capital; however, Northern Cyprus is not officially recognized internationally as a nation. If ever it did become a member of the United Nations, it’s highly unlikely that (the northern half) of Nicosia would be accepted as its capital.
(3) Right of return for all Palestinian refugees. With an impractical and unreasonable definition of refugees as all generational descendants of the original Palestinian refugees, who willingly left Israel during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence. And did so at the request (actually orders) of Arab military leaders representing the five Muslim nations that attacked Israel the day after she became a sovereign state on May 14, 1948. Many of these displaced refugees were well-to-do Arabs who didn’t want to get in the way of their own armies, and who could afford the exit from Israel. As opposed to the typical and more accurately defined refugees who flee their country because they are being persecuted, attacked, and killed by hostile forces. Such as hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians disenfranchised by the ongoing six-year civil war in Syria.
Some Equivalent Examples
Let’s stretch our imagination to the theatre of the absurd with comparisons to the United States regarding these three untenable demands that Arabs have persisted in for 70 years … 50 years since they began to call themselves Palestinians. With the overview that these ultimatums are those of a people who participated directly in or were collaborators with surrounding Arab counties defeated by Israel in four wars (1948, 1956, 1967 & 1973) … wars that the Arabs started. Despite victory in these wars, the Israelis gave back Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and what the Arabs call the West Bank to Jordan. Egypt and Jordan then surrendered functional control to the Palestinians.
In a broader scope, Israel relinquished political and administrative regulation over these areas to appease international pressure (including that from the United States) to allocate the West Bank and Gaza as “Palestinian territories.” Which included giving up some rights and privileges that have belonged to the Jews from the historical founding of Israel, then the historic rebirth of that same Jewish nation in 1948, with Jerusalem as the capital. But not just because the United Nations passed a resolution in 1947 granting the Jews retroactive possession of the land of Israel.
Most of all because God gave this land to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob hundreds of years before King David made Jerusalem its capital. Arabs claim Jerusalem (actually all of Israel) as their own largely based on their Muslim religion citing the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock on Temple Mount as their 3rd holiest site in Islam. When, in fact, Jerusalem is not mentioned even one time in the Koran; whereas Jerusalem or Zion is named over 800 times in the Bible and always has been the holiest site of Judaism. Wouldn’t the holiest site of Judaism supersede the 3rd holiest site of Islam, especially if that 3rd holiest site is not even mentioned in the Koran?! (See Eye of Prophecy article, The Myth of Al Aqsa Mosque, posted 4-16-16).
What we see today are Palestinians (Arabs) still alive who fought with or supported or cheered Egypt, Syria, and Jordan in these wars (and their children and grandchildren who don’t know any better or who know and don’t care) who were defeated in battle; yet, who make demands as though they were the victors in these wars. That and rewriting history itself by making preposterous claims that they were in the land of Israel first, or there the longest, or that they bear sovereign status over the Jews because for a while Arabs ruled over Israel (when it was called Palestine). When, in fact, both before and after the Arabs (beginning with Mohammed) took possession of most of Israel, it was the Romans, then the Crusaders, then the Arabs (again), then the Ottoman Turks, and finally the British who seized and maintained control of the Promised Land for varying intervals of time.
(The Ottoman Turks Surrendered Jerusalem (all of Israel) to British General Edmund Allenby in 1917)
(1) Pre 1967 Six-Day War Lines: With the equivalent of recognizing and siding with Palestinian demands that Israel returns (retreats) to pre-1967 so-called boundaries (cease-fire lines), an appropriate analogy would be for the United States to give back some of the original thirteen colonies to England. Not that the United Nations or European Union or the United Kingdom would make such ridiculous demands of the United States; however, that is equivocally what UN resolutions and many nations of the European Union and ALL Muslim countries have demanded of Israel. Refer to Eye of Prophecy article, United Nations Downsizing of Israel (Resolution 2334). Posted 1-7-17.
Another parallel is that of France insisting the United States return all or part of the states that comprised the Louisiana Purchase, because the purchase price was too low or because many Frenchmen and women in the United States (whether citizens or not) were “unjustly” affected by such a transaction. Or Alaska reverting back to Russia. Or Mexico wanting New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and California returned to them. Or any nation refusing to recognize the sovereign geographical borders of the United States. But that’s what’s happening in and to Israel: International pressure for the Jews to give back to the Palestinians what Jordan, Egypt, and the Palestinians never legally had in the first place—which makes it even more absurd than the above cited examples.
(2) Demands for East Jerusalem as the Capital of a Palestinian State: No different than the United States conceding the eastern part of Washington D.C. back to the British, with what would be tantamount to an apology for defeating the British in war. And not one war, but two (War of 1812). For the record, I am an admirer of the British. But concerning nationality and national rights, especially those afforded by victory in war that always comes with the highest price that can be paid—the blood of American soldiers and civilians—I am first and foremost an American.
Obviously, such a ludicrous demand (East Washington belongs to the British) is not going to happen.
Why then do so many nations of the world side with Muslim Arabs that the eastern half of Jerusalem (there is still no such thing as East Jerusalem; for example, Nir Barkat is Mayor of all of Jerusalem) should be abandoned by the Israelis to the Palestinians who want it to be the capital of a Palestinian State? When any other city in the West Bank could be made its capital, particularly Ramallah which currently houses the Palestinian Authority governmental agencies. The ONLY reason that the Arabs want part of Jerusalem as their capital is because the Jews claim all of Jerusalem as the God-given historical and eternal capital of Israel.
(3) Right of Return of the Original Palestinian “Refugees” to Israel, Including all Descendants: The Palestinians have arbitrarily twisted the definition of a refugee to include (an infinitum) all descendants of these refugees. Even most of the 1st generation Arabs who fled Israel should not be considered refugees because they left on their own volition; the Jews asked them to stay and be partners in the United Nations approved State of Israel in 1948.
A similar comparison would be the United States allowing the descendants of English, French, Spanish, and Hispanics who left the United States as a result of armed conflict—Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Spanish/American War, Mexican War—to return, no questions asked. Or descendants of those returning to their country (also voluntarily) because certain territories were purchased by the United States.
Yet that is exactly what the Arabs have demanded since 1948. If the Israelis did allow such a return, it would, for all practical purposes, spell the end of Israel. The sheer number of such returnees would reduce the Jews to a minority in their own country. There is no other nation on earth that would do such a thing. In fact, the Arab nations that permit (actually they purposely keep) these “refugee camps” to remain have done so because they have disallowed their fellow Arabs (Palestinians, who didn’t even assume that name until after the PLO came into existence in 1964) to become citizens of those countries. Rather, they are using the Palestinians (refugees) as a bargaining chip to eliminate the state of Israel, just in case many or all of them are allowed to return to Israel.
(One of the Palestinian Refugee Camps in Jordan)
The Head and Not the Tail
Since the astounding victory against Egypt, Syria, and Jordan in the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel for the first time in over 2,500 years is the primary power in the Middle East. Israel can now negotiate (if she chooses) from a position of strength and not weakness. She is once again the head and not the tail.
“…the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom” (Deuteronomy 28:13).
In the four major Arab/Israeli wars, two of Israel’s enemies (Egypt and Jordan) plus Saudi Arabia are beginning to realize that Israel has no intention, whatsoever, to dominate her Arab neighbors. Though not admitting it, they know beyond all doubt that there is no such thing as Israeli apartheid against the Palestinians of Judea/Samaria or the Gaza. They are finally grasping the obvious: Even though Israel regained its rightful God-given supremacy over the Promised Land, she has nonetheless permitted some 4.5 million Palestinians (non-citizens of Israel) to occupy choice parts of Israel … Judea/Samaria and the Gaza.
Israel’s rise to a prominent economic, political, and military player on the world stage means that she no longer must make concessions to international demands that are unfounded, unfair, and unnecessary. And which are downright dangerous to Israeli safety and survival. Not the least of which is Israel’s right to establish her capital in the city of choice—Jerusalem. A privilege that has always existed; one that the United States Congress recognized in 1995 (Jerusalem Embassy Act) followed on December 6, 2017 by the first United States President to reaffirm this right.
Nor is Israel (or any nation) obligated to accept the return of refugees (especially 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation) whether they fit the international definition and standards of refugees or not. Like any sovereign nation on earth, Israel has the prerogative to determine immigration quotas and citizenship requirements.
The modern-day phenomenon of refugees began during World War I but especially during World War II when millions of people from several counties were displaced by the carnage of that global conflict. The whole idea of refugee status is a humanitarian effort to help those suffering from deprivation, displacement, and despair caused by war and sectarian conflict. Nevertheless, refugee sanctuary is designed to be temporary, to get dispossessed people back on their feet. It is not meant to be an indefinite welfare system or perpetual source of aid that deters people from doing as much as they can for themselves.
Moreover, refugees of World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, of the Syrian & Iraqi civil wars (and other sectarian conflicts all over the world) were citizens of their respective countries. Not so with the Palestinians, who voluntarily left Israel in 1948 and some in 1967 to give their Arab military time and space to conquer Israel and eliminate the Jews from the State of Israel. Those Arabs (now called Palestinians) were not citizens of Palestine (there was and is no such state). If they had citizenship, it was from mostly Jordan … also Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and Egypt.
If the United Nations seriously wants to repatriate millions of Palestinian Arab “refugees” (most of whom—descendants—have never lived in Israel), then they should be returned to the host country in which their parents and grandparents were citizens. Which very well could be the country in which they currently reside as “refugees.”
UNRWA (United Nations Relief & Works Agency)
In Mahmoud Abbas’s previously mentioned speech, he also railed against President Trump’s decision to cut in half the first of three-four Palestinian aid (through UNRWA) installments scheduled for 2018. No matter that Abbas had previously refused to discontinue or even reduce hundreds of millions of dollars the PA spends on monthly stipends to the families of Palestinians imprisoned because they have murdered or attacked Jews. President Trump followed through by cutting 65 million from the first installment of some 130 million in aid. In all, the United States contributes around 370 million dollars annually to UNRWA, about 30% of UNRWA’s budget.
In addition, the US provides millions of dollars in aid directly to the Palestinian Authority, which President Trump has also threatened to reduce or end if the Palestinians persist in their recent demands that the US cannot be a part of any Middle East peace process.
UNRWA was created in December, 1949 exclusively for Arab refugees—nearly all of whom fled Israel at the request (more like orders) of the Arab armies that attacked Israel on May 15, 1948. At that time there were about 750,000 such refugees. Currently there are an estimated 7 million so-called Palestinian refugees in the Middle East, with approximately 4.5 million residing in the West Bank and Gaza Strip of Israel, and the remaining primarily in Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. Of the 7 million, around 5.3 million are registered with UNRWA to receive economic assistance. About one-third of these Palestinians live in 59 refugee camps (West Bank, Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan) with the remaining two-thirds residing in cities and towns around the camps.
(Many Palestinians Registered with UNRWA Are Also Gainfully Employed!)
There is a second UN refugee agency called: United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) created in December, 1950, a year after UNRWA. This second agency was designed to provide refugee status and aid to millions displaced from their homes during World War II. Although the agency was originally devised to assist European refugees and last just three years, it is still in existence and has expanded to include refugees worldwide.
However, there is a distinction between these two organizations that extends beyond the fact that UNRWA is exclusively for Palestinians.
According to Wikipedia, “The UNRWA has a much broader definition of ‘refugee’ than the UNHCR, including not only refugees, but their descendants in perpetuity, however it (was originally intended to) only covers refugees from the 1948 & 1967 Arab-Israeli wars” (parenthesis mine).
Wikipedia also states: “UNRWA has had to develop a working definition of ‘refugee’ to allow it to provide humanitarian assistance (meaning welfare-like aid). Its definition does not cover final status” (parenthesis mine).
Originally Palestinian refugees were considered: “Persons whose regular place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948, and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 conflict.”
One problem with that definition is the way it’s phrased. As stated earlier: the reason the Arabs lost home and livelihood was one of choice. They could have accepted Israel’s offer to remain, but they chose to flee (temporarily) awaiting what they assumed would be a five-nation Arab victory over and obliteration of Israel.
When some of them wanted to return, Israel essentially said: Too late, you had your chance to stay. Israel considered them a “fifth column” who would continue to do whatever they could to eliminate Israel from the face of the map.
One other quote from Wikipedia: “Unlike UNRWA, UNHCR has a specific mandate to aid its refugees to eliminate their refugee status by local integration in (the) current country, resettlement in a third country or repatriation when possible.”
*Note: There’s hardly any country on earth whose government will allow repatriation of former citizens who hated and/or fought against that government, whether the government was democratic or autocratic, good or evil. At least not without severe conditions and restrictions imposed on the returnees. The exception would be 2nd or 3rd generation refugees that wanted no part of their parent’s or grandparent’s revolt against or disdain for their government. In that regard, Israel is an exception to the exception. In the case of the Palestinians, their children of today hate Jews (are even taught how to kill Jews) as much or more than their ancestors.
(Alarmingly Sad … I’ve Seen Part of This Video)
A comprehensive study in September, 2016 revealed that UNRWA spent an average of $256.00 for each of the 5.3 million Palestinian it classifies as refugees, while UNHCR spent only $58.00 per non-Palestinian refugee.
Even though UNRWA extended refugee status to Arabs who left Israel in 1948 and 1967 or those who stayed but refused to become citizens of Israel (West Bank and Gaza), there’s no way that the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of those Arabs should be kept on the refugee payroll. It’s glaringly obvious that the “refugee” status of Palestinians has far exceeded the original purpose and mission of UNRWA. It was not meant for descendants of the 1st generation Arabs that packed up and moved out of Israel in 1948-1949 to maintain their refugee status in perpetuity.
Palestinians claiming (a non-existent) East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian State and Israel’s territorial retreat to 1967 cease-fire lines are critical threats to Israel’s serenity, security, and sovereignty. But there is no more contentious issue than the insistence of Palestinians and most Muslin countries (a couple of exceptions like Saudi Arabia and perhaps Egypt) that millions of Palestinians living in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, and Jordan be allowed to migrate to Israel, a country in which most of these 3rd and 4th generation outsiders have never resided. If that were to occur, hundreds of thousands of Jewish citizens born in or who immigrated to Israel would themselves be displaced from their homes, or would have no land in Judea/Samaria and the eastern part of Jerusalem in which to build more housing.
Israel … Beacon of Democracy in the Middle East
In some prior Eye of Prophecy articles, I have made references to the clear evidence that Israel has treated its Arab Palestinian population far better than Palestinians (or even Arab citizens) are treated in Muslim countries. But it bears repeating.
Because Israel is the only democratic nation in the entire Middle East, 1.8 million Arabs have chosen to become citizens of Israel. They have the right to vote, start and own businesses, attend Israeli schools, enroll in higher educational institutions, apply for government loans, move about the country with ease, and even serve in the Knesset. Yet, they are not conscripted by the IDF, which is mandatory for all Jewish men and women when they turn eighteen years of age. Even the Palestinians (non-citizens) who live in Judea/Samaria and the Gaza have a standard of living that exceeds hundreds of millions of Arab in surrounding Muslim nations, the exception being wealthy Arabs complements of oil.
Moreover, the Israelis do not hate the Palestinians nor is there anything approaching apartheid as some absurdly claim. It is extremely rare for an Israeli Jew to commit an act of violence against a Palestinian. When that occurred, it was normally personal revenge for a Jewish death at the hands of Palestinians. Conversely, Palestinians for years have viciously and repeatedly killed and injured thousands of Jews.
See Eye of Prophecy article, The Real Reason for Palestinian Terrorism (Posted 9-30-17).
God’s Point of View & Instructions Concerning the Promised Land and Its Inhabitants
Question: Does modern-day Israel’s attitude toward and treatment of Palestinians match up with God’s Biblical standards?
Let’s answer that question by examining the way God originally said it should be.
Beginning with the Lord’s instructions to Moses concerning non-Jews:
(Other Bible Translations for Stranger are: Foreigner or Alien)
And, “Do not take advantage of foreigners who live among you in your land. Treat them like native-born Israelites, and love them as you love yourself. Remember that you were once foreigners living in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 19:33-34).
*Note: By all international rules and standards Israel is a sovereign state with constitutionally mandated requirements for citizenship and definitions of foreigners that most nations on earth have—at least those not ruled by a dictator. No matter your view of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the fact remains that non-citizen Palestinians are foreigners in Israel. Many nations of the world would have expelled such foreigners—who refused to become citizens or who didn’t qualify for citizenship within a generation’s time—back to their home country, i.e. the country that issued their passports. For the majority of Palestinians in Israel, that would be Jordan.
It’s historically true that the Lord commanded the Israelites to destroy certain tribes/nations of Canaan … the Promised Land that would become Israel. And for a valid reason, one that God originally explained to Abraham.
“…This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you. And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God” (Genesis 17:7-8).
Before that God told Abraham that the Jews would be captives (in Egypt) for 400 years, but, “…After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction” (Genesis 15:16, italics for emphasis). The Amorites also represented all of the wicked, decadent nations of Canaan.
This demonstrates God’s amazing patience … allowing the inhabitants of Canaan considerable time to repent and stop such ugly, depraved practices as sacrificing their own children.
When it came time for the Israelites to enter Canaan, God through Moses told them: “You must destroy all the nations the Lord your God hands over to you. Show them no mercy, and do not worship their gods, or they will trap you” (Deuteronomy 7:16).
Also: “And I will fix your boundaries from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and from the eastern wilderness to the Euphrates River. I will hand over to you the people now living in the land … Make no treaties with them or their gods. They must not live in your land, or they will cause you to sin against me. If you serve their gods, you will be caught in the trap of idolatry” (Exodus 23:31-32).
See Deuteronomy 18:9-14 for more details of the “detestable customs” of the Canaanite nations.
In contrast to God’s unilateral destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (for example), the Israelites had to do much of their own fighting to establish their nation in the Promised Land. Even then God supernaturally supported them in several battles, the most famous of which was Jericho.
This continued off and on through the period of the Judges; to and through the reign of King David, who consolidated the twelve tribes of Israel into the most powerful nation on earth at the time. The Lord once again did the same thing when Israel was reborn in 1948. The Jews fought four wars initiated by the Arabs, winning each war against all odds—with divine assistance from God himself.
Time/space does not permit elaboration, but the Lord made exceptions for some of the peoples/nations within Israel (formerly Canaan). Those peoples who chose not to fight against Israel were granted foreigner status, even though some were required to effectively serve Israel. But even those of servanthood were to be treated with respect and dignity.
I visited modern-day Israel in 2006. I’ve read volumes about Israel and the Middle East, watched numerous documentaries, studied the Scriptures intensively, and have written extensively about God’s special possession Israel and his chosen people the Jews. The truth of the matter is that overall Israeli disposition toward and treatment of both Israeli-Arabs and Palestinians matches and has prophetically fulfilled God’s timeless instructions and standards given to Moses and Joshua. Can Israel do better? Of course, so can all of us.
What about the Jews Themselves?
Why are they the chosen people? Just how special are they?
Listen to the answer: “But recognize today that the Lord your God is the one who will cross over ahead of you like a devouring fire to destroy them. He will subdue them so that you will quickly conquer them and drive them out, just as the Lord has promised.
“After the Lord your God has done this for you, don’t say in your hearts, ‘The Lord has given us this land because we are such good people!’ No, it is because of the wickedness of the other nations that he is pushing them out of your way. It is not because you are so good or have such integrity that you are about to occupy their land… to fulfill the oath he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” (Deuteronomy 9:3-5).
God isn’t saying that his people had no integrity or that they didn’t have good hearts when it came to other people. Rather, the Lord is making a distinction as to the REASON that he gave them the Promised Land. A reason to preclude all boasting. A reason to give honor and glory to God, not themselves. It was a lesson in humility, a lesson that Israel eventually was forced to learn the hard way.
God did not choose the Jews because they were special. They became special because he chose them. Moses reminded the people what he had said to God, before Joshua led them across the Jordan River into Canaan: “But they are your people and your special possession, whom you brought out of Egypt by your great strength and powerful arm” (Deuteronomy 9:29, italics for emphasis).
*Note: There are several reasons why Anti-Semitism has been irrationally and insidiously prevalent for so long by so many peoples on this earth. But one thing stands out above all the rest: Envy. Of Jewish accomplishments in all walks of life—business, politics, entertainment, medicine, industry, literature, and music.
Ultimately, however, they are the chosen people because God selected them to be a conduit of light to the nations of the earth. And the beautiful brightness of that light shines through Messiah Jesus and the salvation he has brought to both Jew and Gentile through the New Covenant.
The foreigners in ancient Israel would be equivalent to today’s Palestinians, but not as refugees. More like the 1.8 million Israeli Arab citizens of Israel, who at least recognize Israel’s right to exist as a nation, whether they believe this is a divine right and regardless of what they think about Jews as a people.
Conversely, the some 4.5 million Palestinians in Gaza and Judea/Samaria have refused Israeli citizenship because they effectively do not recognize Israel as a nation. In God’s purpose there was only one nation in/of the Promised Land—Israel. And you can be very sure of this: God’s plan for Jews possessing the Promised Land of Israel has never changed. It is as true and real today as it was when God gave this land to Abraham and his descendants and when Joshua led the Israelites into Canaan.
Things to Ponder
God loves all people, individually, and wants everyone to be saved from their sins and the penalty of sin—eternal separation from God. Yet, we also need to fully grasp his two-part plan for the human race. One for salvation—both Jew and Gentile. The other for the sovereign state of Israel and Jerusalem its capital as the seat of God’s kingdom on earth. Thus, God deals harshly with both individuals and nations who seek Israel’s destruction; and also those who in any way, shape, or form aid in this destruction. All the while extending his love through so great a salvation, to all who believe and receive Messiah Jesus as personal Savior—Palestinians included!
What will happen to the Palestinians during the soon-to-come Great Tribulation? I seldom speculate in Eye of Prophecy articles; in favor of commentary based upon Scripture and then correlating God’s word with ancient and modern history and current events. But I offer this (sad) observation:
It’s highly unlikely that Palestinians (nor most Muslims on both an individual or national level) will embrace the Jewish Messiah or the Jews. Even most Jews do not yet recognize Jesus of Nazareth as their (the) Messiah. But when Jesus returns to deliver Israel and Jews across the world from annihilation—first at the hands of God/Magog, then the ten-nation confederation led by Antichrist Nero—Jews by the millions will look upon the one whom they pierced (Zechariah 12).
Then they will say: Baruch haba beshem Adonai … “blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” (Matthew 23:39).
“And so all Israel will be saved…” (Romans 11:26).
Unfortunately, the Palestinians will most likely be fighting on the side of the Antichrist and his conventional armies by means of insurrection and continuing acts of terrorism within Israel. It will be Ishmael’s final attempt to overcome Isaac and replace his step-brother as the promised child. But Isaac has always been God’s choice to bring the ultimate Child of Promise (Messiah Jesus) to mankind.
To Jewish and Gentile believers in Christ, the Jewish Apostle Paul writes: “And you … are children of the promise, just like Isaac. But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit” (Galatians 4:28-29).
“…Joseph, son of David, the angel said, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:20-21).
There will be no displaced people in Messiah’s government, for those who love and follow him.
“Don’t let foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord say, ‘The Lord will never let me be part of his people…’” (Isaiah 56:3).
“I will also bless the foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord, who serve him and love his name, who worship him…” (Isaiah 56:6).
“For the Sovereign Lord, who brings back the outcasts of Israel, says: ‘I will bring others, too, besides my people Israel’” (Isaiah 56:8).
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