re you one of those people who evaluates books by taking a peek at the ending? You pick up a book on finances and look at the concluding chapter to see if the author wants you to give away your IRA, or start buying silver coins. Most of us are like that, so to set your mind at rest about how I'm going to answer the question posed in the title to this article I would like to answer the question with an unambiguous and forthright "yes and no." But more on that later.
Last month we considered the Problem of Palestine in its historical and political context. You do not have to be a Middle East expert to get a grasp on what the fighting is all about. But when the topic turns to the grand sweep of human history, and where the Jews, the modern state of Israel, and the Middle East fit into this big parade, you really have to know your way around your Bible. In view of that we are going to settle for modest answers to some of the common questions that arise in a discussion on this topic. Let's start with one of the silliest questions.
1. Does Israel have a right to exist? Think about it; did the Soviet Union (R.I.P.) have a right to exist? How about the Lithuanian Republic? The fact is, a nation exists for just so long as it can defend itself against a rival, whether the rival be from within or without. The modern state of Israel has successfully defended itself for forty-five years. Its existence is a political reality which is unaffected by the deliberations of the United Nations, or the Arab League. What does affect its existence is the decree of the God of history. Paul tells us: And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, so that they should seek the Lord . . . (Acts 17:26-27a). Like all other nations since the tower of Babel, the modern state of Israel, its borders, and the length of its tenure on the land of Palestine has been determined and appointed.
2. Fine, but isn't Israel special? Don't the Israelis have a special lease? Don't the Jews, as physical descendants of Abraham through Jacob, have a biblically established claim to the land of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee? Let's consider some texts.
"And the lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: `Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are —northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever'" (Gen 13:14-15).
"On the same day the lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: `To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates'" (Gen. 15:18).
"Then the Angel of the lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: `By Myself I have sworn, says the lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son, in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies'" (Gen. 22:15-17).
"For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect" (Rom. 4:13-14).
Do you get the drift? According to these passages Abraham's heirs may lay claim to not only Palestine (Gen. 13), but also to Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and parts of Egypt and Iraq (Gen. 15), to any state on record as an enemy (Gen. 22), and to your backyard as well (Rom. 4). You see, if Abraham's heirs can establish a claim to Judea, Samaria, and Galilee they can establish a claim to the world. Abraham's heirs had better sit up, take notice, and call their lawyers.
But who are these heirs? Are the physical descendants of Abraham his rightful heirs? Are the Jews or the modern Israelis the legitimate claimants to this legacy? Well, no, not really. You see, the apostle Paul pretty well rules that out in the passage quoted above from Romans. Reread the verse. Paul says clearly that the promise is of no effect if a claim to inheritance can be made on the basis of physical descent alone. Paul cuts the ground out from under anyone who would claim a square cubit of real estate on the basis of physical descent.
If you submit to Paul's statement in Romans 4, then you must therefore regard the modern state of Israel in the same institutional category as you would Italy or the United States, that is, with no theological requirement that it exist, other than the Providence of God.
3. Okay, you have probably convinced me that a theological defense of the modern state of Israel is unbiblical. But some would consider your argument here to be anti-Semetic. Are you suggesting that maybe God hates Jews? Let's back up for a minute. It's hard enough for Evangelicals to admit that God hates anyone (Prov. 6:16-19). Did God hate Esau (Rom. 9:13)? In fact, outside of Christ, does God have anything but hatred for sinners and their sin? No, He does not. He hates Scottish Presbyterians and Italian Catholics who are outside of Christ. He hates Russian Jews who are outside of Christ. He hates American Evangelicals who are outside of Christ. And because Jesus told us that those who are given more will have to answer for more, I daresay that American Evangelicals will have far more to explain than Russian Jews.
