Israel-Palestinian Conflict
From a biblical viewpoint, the Israel-Palestinian conflict started when Abraham sinned with Hagar, who bore Ishmael. Ishmael fathers the Arab people and Isaac the Jewish. Complicating this further, 93% of Arabs are Muslim of some kind. Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook in “Kill a Jew – Go to Heaven: The Perception of the Jew in Palestinian Society,” published in Jewish Political Studies Review 17:3-4 (Fall 2005), write:
The Palestinian religious, academic, and political elites teach an ideology of virulent hatred of Jews. The killing of Jews is presented both as a religious obligation and as necessary self-defense for all humankind.
This assessment of the Jews among Arabs or Muslims goes back centuries before the Zionist movement ever began.
No Jews live in Gaza. Two sides dispute Jewish settlement in the West Bank. There are 144 Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Neither a majority of Palestinians or Jews back a two state solution with the addition of the creation of a separate Palestinian state. Half of Jews desire complete expelling of Palestinians from Israel — that doesn’t include Gaza or the West Bank. 75% of Palestinians want the annihilation of Israel. A large majority of all Palestinians support Hamas.
Having traveled to Israel and in the Jewish and Palestinian territories, it’s very tense there. It cannot work like it is. The Jews need a place of their own. A two state solution will never succeed for obvious reasons. Very good arguments say that Israel should have all the land and the Palestinians find someplace else to live with Arab people. Jews should have their own, safe country.
Israel and the Land
Americans would never tolerate what the Jews do in Israel. A certain psychology for the Jews not only allows them to concede to their conditions, but also causes many Jews to advocate for the Palestinians. Many Jews lay a lot of blame on their own people for their problems. I do feel for Israel because of the deep hatred from so many across the world for the Jews.
God still has a plan for Israel. Even if Israel does not own the whole Holy Land, they continue possessing a right to it, based upon scripture. God gave Israel the land, which is why it is called, “the Promised Land.” This supports Israel’s statehood, its formal establishment, and perpetuation. Palestine never had statehood. It didn’t announce it’s own statehood until 1988. The Palestinian territories are not recognized by the US, France, or the UK as a state. At least four Palestinian organizations are designated as terrorist on the United States list, including Hamas.
My assessment of Israel is not some carte blanch acceptance of the policies of Israel. I still pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States with its rampant ungodliness. Support for Israel acknowledges God and the truth of scripture.
Two Wars
Because of world politics, the war in Israel associates with the one in Ukraine. Some of the same characters appear in different roles in both conflicts. I attribute both wars to the Biden administration in the United States. Neither would have occurred with Trump as president of the United States. Many would agree with that, less that would say it in public, but I also want to explain why I think it’s true.
More to Come
I didn’t want to write this in the main body of the post, but I believe that the most controversial statement in either of the first two posts of this series is that the two wars would not have started if Trump were president. This does not advocate for whatever extremes in character that Trump possesses, but in the policies of a Trump administration. At the same time, the name Trump triggers a certain number of people, and it is all they will see in this post. I thought I would fire over that bow or take a preemptive strike, whichever metaphor works for you. It would be better to discuss the policies rather than the typical Trump argument, that is essentially worthless at this point.
“Paul made a commitment to obey the government and to pay taxes. Was Paul wrong in doing so or for teaching so?
You are missing a key point. Did he and the brethren obey the government when they were looking for him and they helped him escape over the wall? How about Rahab, why did she not obey the authorities and hand over the two spies, but she lied about where they were?
Romans 13:3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same:
When rulers are a terror to the righteous and allow godless evil to run a nation, then you are to stand and preach against that ungodliness of the authorities. In other words, you obey authorities only when they do right. Other than that, you stand against them.
And why would anyone fight godless wars when their government would not obey the authority of the Constitution?
I certainly would pledge no allegiance to a country who hates bible believing Christians.
What I hate about this thread of comment is that, again, it moves off the actual point of my posts and picks one little thing, the pledge of allegiance, which is definitely a liberty issue. I wasn’t writing about that. I said something about it, yes. Granted, I don’t get your not pledging allegiance, like the NFL football players kneeling or just putting head down during national anthem. It’s not something I like, but I’m answering the comments.
Tom,
The people looking for Paul in Damascus weren’t the government. That was the religious leadership, the Jewish rulers in town, that would accuse Paul of blasphemy. The Bible doesn’t say to obey government when it disobeys God. The obedience is hierarchical, which is why it says subject yourself to government. How could the government in Romans 13, to which Paul subjected, be a terror to evil works? Paul is saying that it was. For certain, not everything, but to many things.
We live in a republic, which is in the pledge of allegiance. The American republic is a representative democracy, which means that when you talk authority in this country, it’s not separate from you. If you pledge to the American republic, you’re pledging to change things, do what it takes. You aren’t pledging to a king.
I don’t consider what’s happening in the Ukraine to be a godly war, but that’s not even what I mentioned in my comment. I mentioned an invasion. Are you going to fight to protect your home? You need more than a rifle in your back yard, if you’re fighting an invading country.
Don’t pledge, Tom, but don’t cry for anyone to help you if there is an invasion of this country. It’s possible in this country to still live a godly life, which seems to be the standard (1 Timothy 2:1).
“Are you going to fight to protect your home? You need more than a rifle in your back yard, if you’re fighting an invading country.”
I have guns and are willing to use them to kill anyone who comes into my home as an enemy. If an invasion occurs, the military will do what it must. That get paid to do their jobs. I will gather my neighborhood together (whoever want to participate) and setup a perimeter guarded with guns and will come up with a system to protect those who take part in wanting to be protected by citizens (love your neighbor as yourself comes to mind).
Today, with so many God haters with Marxists attitudes, some will only bend to “their godless government” to protect them and would want no part in “helping” to protect their neighbors. But, just like a godless Israel, we have a God hating America and since God has his hands on the Gentile nations to rule over Israel and the world, then what he did to Israel is well deserved in America because of the churches apathy and disregard in living holy and preaching for the Lord Jesus Christ.
Would I consider surrender to an invading army that demands so? Yes, because God told Israel to do just that, believing that God has his hands on destroying this nation.
At this time, I believe that there are still enough bible believing Christian remnant in this country that are trying to preach the gospel and make disciples of men. This nation like others, deserve judgment and it looks like the Muslims might be the people to do it from the inside and the outside. The problem is that courage has been lost in fighting the good fight of faith and it might get to a point that a nation such as America will suffer greatly as God did to his own people Israel whom he destroyed and removed them off their land.
Thus saith the LORD; Deceive not yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us: for they shall not depart. For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you, and there remained but wounded men among them, yet should they rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire.
(Jeremiah 37:9-10)
Tom,
This comment seemed much more reasonable, as in ‘come now let us reason together,’ than the first one. You don’t have to pledge, but I am going to pledge still and actually enjoy pledging. Maybe not as much as David pledged in Psalm 101, but I still like the pledge of allegiance, when I’m doing it.
KB