What Price Israel?

*( What Price Israel? is the title of a book written in 1953, by Alfred Lilienthal, which was a chronicle of the history of the repatriation of Palestine by European Jews, and its subsequent establishment as the modern nation Israel in 1948. This article deals with, and exposes, why the U.S. government, since that inception, has, without waivering or exception, favored Israel over the Arab Palestinians who have occupied that little triangle of land for at least 1400 years.)

Since the inception of the modern nation Israel in 1948, following their so-called  “war of independence,” in which 15000 Palestinians were murdered and 700,000 were driven from their homes, the United States government has consistently supported Israel. Beginning with the initial loan of $135 million by President Truman in that same year, the U.S. government has granted over $350 billion in foreign aid to Israel–which includes a $4 billion annual handout– in addition to authorizing loans and liberal loan guarantees that have never been repaid. Until the current occupation by U.S. troops of Iraq and the U.S. proxy war against Russia in Ukraine, Israel qualified as the largest single recipient of U.S. foreign aid of any other country in the world.¹

What is the reason for all the beneficence towards this nation located on that tiny little triangle of land on the Mediterranean Sea? The official government response to this question usually goes something like this:

“Democratic Israel is a strategic and helpful ally, and U.S. relations with Israel strengthens the U.S. presence in the Middle East²

It must also be obvious to even the casual observer, that Americans of Jewish descent, known as “Zionists“, who occupy high positions and wield great influence in both the U.S. government and the U.S. private sector, also have a considerable bearing on this phenomenon.

While these things obviously play a factor in the U.S. government’s benevolence toward Israel, what isn’t all that obvious is the underlying support for Israel from the Christian Evangelical community. Abraham H. Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, concerning this group, says:

“Polls of American public opinion reveal, in marked contrast to similar polls in Europe, that the American people support Israel over the Palestinians by a significant margin. A key element in these consistent findings in many polls ever since the violence broke out almost 2 years ago — is the overwhelming support for Israel among individuals calling themselves Evangelical.”³

In a statement on his website, the popular Evangelical leader and TV host Pat Robertson said this about the modern nation Israel:

“Yes, the survival of the Jewish people is a miracle of God. The return of the Jewish people to the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is a miracle of God. The remarkable victories of Jewish armies against overwhelming odds in successive battles in 1948, and 1967, and 1973 are clearly miracles of God. The technological marvels of Israeli industry, the military prowess, the bounty of Israeli agriculture, the fruits and flowers and abundance of the land are a testimony to God’s watchful care over this new nation and the genius of this people….Ladies and Gentleman, evangelical Christians support Israel because we believe that the words of Moses and the ancient prophets of Israel were inspired by God. We believe that the emergence of a Jewish state in the land promised by God to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was ordained by God…..We believe that God has a plan for this nation which He intends to be a blessing to all the nations of the earth.”⁴

I believe this is a fair representation of what most Christian Evangelicals—in a spiritual sense—believe concerning Israel. In his article, Robertson sites some prophecy concerning Israel under the New Covenant, but the major Scriptural basis for the Evangelical community’s allegiance is his last sentence above, which he draws from Genesis 12 & 17:

Gen 12:1-3

Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:

And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Gen 17:7-8

And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

It is a widely held belief among Evangelicals—largely driven by the preaching of theologians like Robertson—that American prosperity (blessing) has resulted from its (i.e., the U.S. Government’s) great generosity and deference toward Israel. After all, don’t the above verses say that God will “bless them that bless thee” (Abram’s seed, viz., Israel)? Moreover, are not events and conditions that have occurred in Israel since 1948 proof (as Robertson claims in his article) that these happenings are ordained of God, and thus current-day Israel is indeed God’s chosen nation?

The answer is, No! It proves no such thing! Certainly not according to the Biblical record. Robertson uses the following passage from Ezekiel chapter 36 in an attempt to bolster his argument:

Ezek 36:26-28

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.⁵

Solely because of what the above passage says in the last sentence about the land, Robertson believes that the re-taking of Palestine by the Jews in the 1948 was the fulfillment of this Old Testament prophecy concerning the new covenant. Would Robertson have us to believe that the prophecies in the verses that follow (Ezek 36:29-38) have also been fulfilled? Is anybody in Israel keeping the Mosaic Law, as this passage asserts they will? Since there is no Temple and no Tabernacle, there can’t be a blood sacrifice  ((Jews now have the same sacrifice for their sins as do Gentiles: Jesus Christ and him crucified. But, by and large, they reject Christ as an imposter, therefore, there remaineth no more sacrifice for their sins. Heb. 10:26)) –the most important element in the law–so how can this be true?

Moreover, this little microcosm of scripture does not do justice to the entirety of the prophecy concerning New Covenant Israel, because the quoted passage does not lay out the conditions that will exist in the prophesied kingdom. To see the full picture, let’s consider some other prophesies. We’ll start with the prophecy of the future kingdom of Zion in Isaiah, chapters 2 & 60:

Isaiah 2:1-4

The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

Isaiah 60:1-14

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.

Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.

All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory.

Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons form far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.

And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.

Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.

For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

This is a lengthy scripture, but I believe it is necessary to drive home a point: when in the world has what is described in these passages happened, or is presently happening? It certainly isn’t happening in modern Israel or Jerusalem. Even if one made all this a figure of speech, the passages still couldn’t be applied to modern Israel.

If the above isn’t enough evidence to refute Robertson’s claims, consider what Zechariah says at the end of his prophecy concerning the nation Israel, and Jerusalem, their holy city:

Zech 14

Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.

For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:

But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.

And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.

All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin’s gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king’s winepresses.

And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.

And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.

And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.

And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.

And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.

And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.

And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar.

Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.

It seems superfluous to say this, but for the sake of those who might have missed it, let me point out several things in this passage (and also in those from Isaiah) that utterly destroy any argument that God’s hand was in the repatriation and establishment of modern Israel in 1948:

1. There will be continual light in Jerusalem, which will draw the nations to it

2. All the land will be turned into a plain, and it will “…blossom as a rose.”

3. The heathen (Israel’s present day enemies) will cease from their hostilities against Israel

4. Therefore, Jerusalem will be safely inhabited

5. All the heathen will be in subjection to Israel, and will show such by respecting Israel’s law, and by handing over all their possessions and resources to Israel

6. Finally, “…the LORD shall be king over all the earth…”

That king will be none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says at the end of John’s “Revelation” that he will rule the nations with “…a rod of iron…”, through his twelve disciples, who will rule over the twelve tribes of Israel “…an hundred and forty and four thousand…” persons, to be exact—who will rule the world from Jerusalem⁶

The Error Of The Evangelical Position And The Remedy For It

It is this king and kingdom (nation) of which the scriptures prophesy. These prophecies certainly are not in accord with today’s embattled nation that is presently occupying Palestine. If this is the case what, then, causes so many folks to make this false claim about modern Israel? It is the failure (or willful refusal?) to recognize where we (the world) presently are on the Biblical timeline.

The Problem

Except for a small remnant of folks such as myself, the entire Christian community—Catholics, Protestants, Evangelicals—recognizes only two major divisions in the Bible: the “Old Testament” and the “New Testament”. Although the general Christian community does not all agree about who Israel is, it does agree that we are presently in the latter (New Testament) division, which they believe begins with Matthew and ends with Revelation.

What this does is obscure a separate division within the New Testament writings. This division presents something that is referred to as “the mystery.” Understanding this mystery is vital to a correct understanding of who Israel is, and what is its present standing as a nation before God. It is the division in which the rest of us stand. This “mystery” is sandwiched between the “The Acts of the Apostles” and what is known as the “Hebrew” epistles,⁷  and is comprised of 13 letters, or “books,” beginning with the letter to the Romans, and ending with the letter to Philemon. The author of these thirteen letters is the apostle Paul.

The first mention of the mystery in the Bible is in Paul’s letter to the Romans: ⁸

Rom 16:25-26

Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,

But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith.

Three things stand out in this passage: 1. The phrase “my gospel” tells us that the mystery is particular to the apostle Paul’s revelation; 2. the phrases “kept secret since the world began” and “But now is made manifest” tell us that the mystery could not have been known or revealed in scripture before Paul revealed it; and 3. Everyone is now instructed to obey the mystery.

There is no Biblical Nation Israel Presently

This mystery, among other things, explains exactly where Israel, as a nation, stands with God presently, and why modern Israel cannot be the same as Israel in the prophetic scriptures.

In chapter 11 of the same letter, Paul writes this concerning Israel:

Rom 11:5-15; 25-28

Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded

(According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.

And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them:

Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway.

I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.

Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?

For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:

If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them.

For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?

…. For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.

And in the last chapter of Acts, from his house prison in Rome, he speaks to Israel‘s heavenly position:

Acts 28:23-28

And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.

And some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not.

And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias⁹ the prophet unto our fathers,

Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive:

For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it.

From these passages, it should be very clear to the discerning reader that national Israel has fallen from its position as God’s chosen people, indeed, Israel is now “castaway”. It should also be clear that “castaway” is not a permanent condition. As Paul says in the last part of the above passage from Romans, “…all Israel shall be saved…” but not before “…the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.” Israel now exists in the spiritual “gross darkness” of Isaiah 60:2.

The Dispensation of Grace

This begs the question: who is “all Israel” and what is “the fullness of the Gentiles”? The Evangelical community would say that the answer to the first question is anyone who can claim Jewish ancestry.¹⁰ But within the context of the prophetic scriptures, a claim of ancestry cannot possibly be true. Israel under the New Covenant comprises “…an hundred and forty and four thousand…” individuals. Although each one of them is a Jew, this is a tiny fraction of the total number of people claiming Jewish descent  presently living in the world. ((around 14 million, currently)) Does this mean that the rest of the millions of Jews who aren’t a part of this remnant are left without a hope or a promise? Absolutely not! They have the same promise that everyone else has: salvation by grace, through faith. This promise is particular to the division in scripture Paul referred to as the “…dispensation of the grace of God…” wherein anyone may become a part of the family of God, apart from Israel, and without observing the works of Israel’s law.

Eph 3:1-6; 2:8,9

For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,

If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:

How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,

Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)

Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;

That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel.

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast.

Paul’s gospel says that anyone, at any time, under any circumstances, can be saved eternally by simply believing that “Christ died for our sins…that he was buried…and that he rose again the third day…. For our justification.”¹¹ This is what all Christians should be telling everyone, including people who claim Jewish descent, wherever they may be residing in the world. The Jews are no doubt a proud, resilient, resourceful people with a long history, but God, now, has conferred no special blessing on them, nor is He blessing Gentiles who bless them. He isn’t blessing Nations, period. He is saving individuals—Jews and Gentiles alike—who will believe the gospel of Christ, and blessing them all with “all spiritual blessings in heavenly places.”¹² 

Thus, for any believer (in Christ) to politically favor a foreign government/nation on the false basis that God ordained that government’s existence is doing something contrary to the Word of Truth, rightly divided, and will, according to Colossians 3:23–25, receive for the wrong they have done and advocated for, i.e., they will suffer loss at the judgment of Christ. (1 Cor 3:10-15; Rom. 14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10)

Related articles on this site: Israel: Where does she stand in the Dispensation of Grace?; Christian Zionism; The Age Old Battle Between Jews and Muslims: Who’s Right? To Whom does the land of Canaan Rightfully Belong?

Feel free to re-print and distribute this article. All Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

Are you saved? Jesus Christ—“who knew no sin”—and his sacrificial death on the Cross, has made the way for “everyone that believeth…to be reconciled to God. History has shown that whatever peace man has achieved in the world can only be temporary. The Bible says that individual men and women can know, beyond a doubt, that they are saved and bound for heaven, and therefore have absolute and permanent peace, regardless of what is going on in the world, by trusting Jesus Christ and his death on the cross for their eternal salvation. “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”¹³ Have you done this? If not, why not now?

Notes