The current war in Israel is a polarizing event that has sparked wide ranging opinion and debate. Its easy to get caught up in the hype of civilian casualties when images of children victims are broadcast by the media and the narrative can quickly portray one side or the other as war criminals.
Civilian deaths are part of war, whether in Israel, the Ukraine, Afghanistan, or Iraq, and often exceed military casualties by far. In World Wat 2, man’s worst conflict, estimates as high as 50 million civilians perished, double that of military personnel.
Despite technological advancements in precision weaponry, civilian casualties in Gaza, Afghanistan and Iran remained high primarily due to the defensive strategies of Islamic jihadists. It has been common practice for terrorists to imbed themselves in civilian populations, thereby using women and children as human shields. In Gaza, the presence of Hamas tunnels in close proximity to schools and hospitals aggravates the potential for civilian casualties when Israeli forces attempt to root out and destroy the enemy.
Supporters of Israel staunchly defend the country’s right to defend itself against terrorism, while those who sympathize with the Palestinians view Israel as the aggressor and the people of Gaza as the victims. Both sides have their validity, however, I believe religious implications carry the most significant insight into comprehending the conflict.
Many of those who support Israel cite the Bible’s proclamation that “The nation of Israel is like a mighty lion; When it is sleeping, no one dares wake it. Whoever blesses Israel will be blessed, and whoever curses Israel will be cursed.” (Numbers 24:9).
Who Is Israel?
The plot thickens, however, when different perceptions arise regarding the true identity of Israel. Some assert that the secular state of Israel today does not constitute God’s people, and that the modern Israel is the Christian faith. Galatians 6:15-16 is used to support this claim, where Paul writes, “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.”
However, this passage of scripture doesn’t exclude Israel but rather cites it as an exception to the rule. Paul states in Romans 11 that God did not reject His chosen people but has reserved a remnant for Himself. The Jews have been punished for rejecting their Messiah and have returned to the land that was promised to their forefathers. They did not stumble beyond recovery (Romans 11:11).
Because of Israel’s rejection of Jesus Christ, all nations have been blessed, fulfilling God’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 12:3). However, Paul goes on to say that Christians are branches that have been grafted into the family of God and that branches were broken off to facilitate this. He warns that the branches do not support the root and if Israel does not persist in unbelief, they can be grafted in again (Romans 11:17-24).
In verses 25-27, Paul reveals that one day all Israel will be saved and he adds in verse 29 that God’s call is irrevocable. Those who advocate that the nation of Israel currently occupying the land of Israel cannot be the true Israel ought to consider that God is sovereign and He will use believers and nonbelievers alike to accomplish his purposes.
God caused Rahab to commit treason in Joshua 2, the Egyptians to preserve the Israelites and allow them to flourish (Genesis 46-50; Exodus 1-13), the Babylonians to execute judgement on Israel (Habakkuk 1:6) and Cyrus the Persian Emperor to permit the building of the second temple (Isaiah 44:28, 2 Chronicles 36:22-23, Ezra 1:1-4).
God even used the Romans to accomplish the crucifixion of Jesus in order to fulfil prophecy, since the Jewish form of execution was by stoning. God is greater than all the nations of the earth and He uses them all to achieve His ultimate redemption of mankind through faith in Jesus Christ.
And then there are those who insist that to be a true Israelite, one must be ethnically pure and traceable to the original twelve tribes of Israel. This logic is flawed, however, because even Jesus’ family tree includes Ruth, who was a Moabite (Ruth 4:22, Matthew 1:1), not an Israelite. Furthermore, God’s purpose for preserving Israel did not exclude intermarriage as is evidenced by Esther’s marriage to a Persian king.
The Bible lists Abraham as a Hebrew, David as an Israelite and Esther as a Jew. This is significant because there are people who insist that Israelites must live in the land of Israel and that the Jews who migrated back to the land of their forefathers weren’t true Jews because they lived in foreign countries. Esther did not live in the land of Judah and even concealed her ethnicity to the point that her husband didn’t know until she disclosed it to him. Yet scripture identifies her as a Jew.
Joseph also took an Egyptian wife and completely assimilated into Egyptian culture, as did Esther. God’s ways are higher than our ways and He uses a wide and diverse array of human beings to administer His redemptive plan. He also uses bloody battles to carry out comeuppance and establish morality by eliminating immorality.
The Apple Of God’s Eye
When we observe the happenings in Israel today, we must not too quickly dismiss what we are witnessing as outside of God’s master plan. Despite a history of obstinacy towards God, Israel has been punished for her transgressions and remains the apple of God’s eye (Jeremiah 2:8). Because God is sovereign, he will lift Israel once again and she will play a significant role in the end times theatre.
The fact that there is even a nation called Israel today is remarkable and when you consider that its inhabitants are primarily Jews it is utterly astonishing. Israel became a nation again in 1948 after nearly 1900 years and the land was quickly filled with Jews migrating in from all over the world.
Isaiah 66:8 predicted this, “Who has ever heard of such things? Who has ever seen things like this? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives birth to her children.”
No other nation in the history of nations has accomplished anything like this. In fact, history demonstrates that any people who settle in a new land will lose their national identity after five generations and be completely assimilated into their new culture. Not only have the Jews survived with their culture, religion, ethnicity and language intact, they once again inhabit the land of their forefathers with Jerusalem as their capital city.
What once was a barren wasteland, now flourishes under irrigation and produces an abundance of agricultural bounty. “But you, mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. I am concerned for you and will look on you with favor; you will be plowed and sown, and I will cause many peoples to live on you – yes all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt. I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful and numerous. I will settle people on you as in the past and will make you prosper more than before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. I will cause my people Israel to live on you. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance; you will never again deprive them of their children. (Ezekiel 36:8-12).
In 1967 during the six-day war, Jerusalem returned to complete Jewish control, concluding the times of the Gentiles that Jesus spoke of in Luke 21:24. Today, the religion of Islam attempts to assert authority over the Dome of the Rock through religious claims and Jerusalem continues to be a hotbed of contention. The surrounding Arab countries are on edge and would love to see the annihilation of the Jews and Israel wiped right off the map. The Bible predicts that one day they will attack as a group and the alliances depicted in scripture are aligning in our time. The Prophet Zechariah wrote, “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.” (Zechariah 12:2-3).
There are those who assert that if Israel were truly God’s people, He would establish peace in the land and there would be harmony amongst neighbors. This, however isn’t biblical at all. True peace will only come when Christ returns.
The Prophet Daniel foretold of a time when their will be a seven year covenant that brings about a short lived peace. This will occur in the 70th week of years prophesied in Daniel 9:24, however, the antichrist will abolish the treaty at its midpoint and set up the abomination of desolation (Daniel 9:27).
We are witnessing prophecy being fulfilled before our very eyes. To the uninformed, it may not seem like God is in control, but he most certainly is. The stage is being set for the most atrocious battle of all time and the most miraculous victory of all time. The pieces of the prophetic puzzle are falling into place and soon the belligerence of man towards God will culminate in the battle of Armageddon, and Jesus Christ will return and destroy His enemies with the splendor of His appearing (2 Thessalonians 2:8).
We live is a unique time in history. A time that was foretold over 2500 years ago and the prophecy is reliable. Amos 3:7 informs us, “Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.” Today we are surrounded by signs that the Bible warns will precede the return of Jesus Christ to judge the world. Current events constitute warning shots over our bow to awaken us to the fact that all will soon be fulfilled. Israel is at the very center of end times prophecy and is key to unlocking Christian eschatology.
Most of humanity remains oblivious to the lateness of the hour and will be surprised by the sudden conclusion of the current age. “But you, brothers are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.” (1 Thessalonians 5:4).
