It is nearly impossible to pick up any nationally syndicated newspaper today or watch any national morning news broadcast without hearing about the escalating unrest and impending conflict in the Middle East. Every time there is a crisis in the Middle East we move another step closer to the return of Jesus Christ. In the meantime, while many may feel that there remains a possibility for a peaceful solution to the centuries-old conflict between Israel and it’s Arab neighbors, the potential for greater conflict is also very possible.
ILLUSTRATION: Dr. David R. Reagan wrote about an encounter he had with one man on an airplane. The man grumbled, “Why don’t those stubborn Jews just give the Arabs the West Bank so that there can be peace in the Middle East?”
Suspecting that the man did not have the foggiest idea what he was talking about, Dr. Reagan responded with this question. “Where is the West Bank?” he asked the man.
“You know,” he said.
“Yes,” Dr. Reagan replied, “I know, but do you?”
“Well, of course I know!” the man snapped.
“Okay then, where is it?”
“Well…well…” he sputtered, “the West Bank is the west bank of the Nile!”
Dr. Reagan said it was all he could do to refrain from laughing out loud. Yet, it really wasn’t a laughing matter. Here was a man demanding the Israelis surrender the West Bank when he had no idea where the West Bank was even located.
The man was embarrassed when the doctor explained that the west bank of the Nile belonged to Egypt not Israel. And he was astounded to learn that if Israel were to surrender the real West Bank, the nation would be left in an indefensible position, because it would be only 9 miles wide at its narrowest point.
Today we are going to continue our study on the Middle East, but instead of focusing on America we are going to be looking at the Middle East crisis from a Biblical perspective. I feel compelled to address this conflict between Israel and her enemies because every news report I’ve seen from major news networks presents a heavily biased, anti-Israeli account of what is going on over there.
Palestinian officials both in the Middle East and in Washington make propaganda statements that go forth unchallenged and unhindered into the living rooms of naïve citizens of the western world who have no understanding of what is going on other than what they see and hear through the biased reporting of the news media. And yet, those same citizens are willing to sit in their comfortable homes halfway around the world and pontificate about how the Israelis need to stop being so stubborn and start surrendering land for peace. But is that really the answer?
Much has been written about the Middle East crisis from a political perspective, but this crisis will never be truly understood apart from its spiritual roots. For this conflict, from start to finish, is a spiritual conflict, which is why it will never be resolved politically.
I believe it is also imperative for Christians to know from a Biblical perspective what is truly going on. The Bible has all of human history etched upon its pages. From the very beginning to the very end, it’s all there. If we want to know what is happening in the world today and why, all we have to do is study that ancient text, which is just as relevant today as it was when it was first being recorded.
So let’s start our study by laying a foundation to build upon and go back to ancient history and see where this conflict was birthed.
I. The Rightful Owner
The conflict between Israel and its Arab neighbors in its very simplest form is a dispute over land. So, let’s see just who it is that holds the title deed of the land in question. And we’ll begin with the very first owner found in Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
Before we get into all the confusion that human beings bring to any matter I want you to realize something very important. The very first book of the Bible tells us very clearly who owns that piece of real estate in the Middle East that is so hotly contested. It tells us very clearly who owns everything. The Creator, God, the One who formed the land by His Words is the rightful owner and the only One who has the right to decide who gets to utilize His creation.
I hope that you already knew this. But is case you didn’t, I’ll reiterate it. God created everything. Therefore, everything belongs to Him. You belong to Him. The sun, the moon, the stars, the earth, everything belongs to Him, and only He has the right to decided who gets to utilize what. So, according to the Bible, (the only truly reliable source we have) the land being fought over in the Middle East, first and foremost belongs to God.
II. Two Land Covenants
Now, having said that, the Bible tells us that God then made two promises or covenants about who He is giving the land to and how it will be used.
A. The Abrahamic Covenant
About 4,000 years ago or 2000 BC, God made a promise to one man Abraham and this promise is found in Genesis 12:1-3. “Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. [2] I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. [3] I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
This passage of scripture is often referred to as the Abrahamic Covenant. A covenant is a binding promise made between two parties that spells out what each party involved will do and what they can expect from the other party. In this case the covenant was made between God and Abraham – thus the title, the Abrahamic Covenant.
1. Conditional Promises
Now it’s important to note that when God makes a promise He makes one of two kinds of promises. His promises are either conditional or unconditional. In conditional promises you find phrases such as “If you will… then I will.” There is a condition attached to the fulfillment of the promise.
For example in John 8:51 Jesus makes a promise. He says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.” This is a conditional promise. For a man not to see death, he must first keep God’s word. Jesus is saying if you do this (keep My word) then I will do this (ensure that you will not see death).
Another example of a conditional promise can be found in Matthew 10:32-33 where Jesus says, “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. [33] But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.” Again you see that the promise (that Jesus will acknowledge us before the Father) is conditional upon our fulfilling our part (which is to confess or acknowledge Christ before men.
2. Unconditional Promises
The other kind of promise that God makes is an unconditional one. In an unconditional promise, God says He will do something and it doesn’t depend on the party with which He is making the covenant. Basically, He is saying this is what I will do no matter what you do. The Abrahamic Covenant is an unconditional promise. Never once does God say, “If you will do so-and-so…” or “If you will be faithful…” The promises He makes to Abraham are absolute and unconditional.
God promises Abraham a land, a nation, a great name, protection, and most importantly that through him all nations of the world would be blessed, (meaning the Savior of the world would be born of his lineage.) And notice that Abraham didn’t have to do anything to ensure these promises would come to pass. God said this is what I will do, period.
The Lord appeared to Abraham six additional times to reaffirm this covenant with him (Gen. 12:7; 13:14-16; 15:1-6; 15:8-21; 17:1-8; and 22:15-18) and, in these subsequent appearances, God declared that the covenant was and “everlasting” one. Meaning that it was a promise that would last forever. He wasn’t going to rescind the promise sometime in the future. It would stand and God would honor it, no matter what.
God also spelled out the boundaries of the land He promised Abraham in great detail in Genesis 15:18-21, “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— [19] the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, [20]the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, [21]the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
This exact area of the Abrahamic Land Grant today is a bit difficult to pinpoint since some of these peoples haven’t existed for centuries. Nor are we completely sure of the boundaries of the lands they occupied. However, by doing some studying of maps of ancient times and comparing them with maps of the modern day Middle East, the area outlined and striped on the map I provided for you is an educational guess of the total land that God granted to Abraham in Genesis 15. This land encompasses all of modern day Lebanon, most of Israel and Syria, and parts of modern day Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. That’s a lot more land than Israel occupies presently.
The Lord then confirmed the Abrahamic Covenant with Abraham’s descendants, his son Isaac in Genesis 26:1-5 and then with Isaac’s son, Jacob in Genesis 28:3-4, 13-14; and 35:10-12. A thousand years later, King David even confirmed the continuing validity of the Covenant in Psalm 105:8-11, “He remembers His covenant forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations, [9] The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac, [10] And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel as an everlasting covenant, [11] Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance.”
3. Significance of Abrahamic Covenant
So, what’s so important about this covenant? Why are we studying this promise when we are looking at the crisis occurring in the Middle East? Because as we said, one of the main points of contention between Israel and her neighbors is the argument over who is entitled to the disputed land? Who holds the title deed?
The Abrahamic Covenant establishes title to the land in the Middle East. According to the Bible that title was given to Abraham and his descendents by the original owner, God, and the deed belongs to them forever. The Jewish people, the descendents of Abraham, hold the title to the disputed land with no ifs, ands, or buts about it.
Now some people will say that since the Jews rejected their Messiah when He came the first time that they negated this covenant and therefore no longer have any claim to the land. But this idea is not taught anywhere in the Bible. In fact the Apostle Paul teaches clearly in Romans 11:29 that, “…the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” And in fact, in Romans 9:4 Paul specifically states that God’s promises to the Jews are still valid. “…Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises…”
And here’s something else to keep in mind if you think that God has done away with the Jews because of their disobedience or rejection of Jesus. If you believe that God can break His unconditional promises to the Jews, then He can break His promises to you, too.
So, why then is there such a major problem going on in the Middle East if we know who owns the land? What most people don’t know is that there are two Old Testament covenants pertaining to the land of Israel. God made a second covenant with the people of Israel that complicates matters a little more. And this time the covenant was a conditional one.
B. The Mosaic Land Covenant
Even though God had promised the land to the Jews, something happened during the lifetime of Abraham’s grandson, Jacob, which caused the rightful owners to leave their land. There came a time of famine, and in order for them to survive God made provisions for His children in the land of Egypt. (Remember the story of Joseph being sold into slavery in Egypt by his brothers, only to earn a position of authority in which he was able to then save his family?)
Because of the great famine in the land, Jacob and his entire family moved to Egypt - all seventy of them (Gen. 46:26-27). They were protected there and given land on which to raise their herds. But this left the land that God had promised to the Jews unoccupied by the rightful owners. How many of you can see a problem there?
And the problem became worse when after the famine was over the Jews did not immediately return to their homeland. They stayed and made a new home in Egypt and after several generations they became so numerous that the Egyptians became afraid of them. So the Egyptians enslaved the Jews.
Well, you know what happens next, the story of the Exodus. (Moses, the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, and the wandering in the wilderness). Then right before the Children of Israel entered back into the land of promise, about 1250 BC, God made another covenant with them. This covenant, often referred to as the Mosaic Land Covenant or the Canaan Covenant, is recorded in Deuteronomy chapters 28-30. Now this is too long of a passage to read this morning, so I’ll give you the gist of what can be found there and you can read it on your own, later.
The Land Covenant, this second covenant God made with the Jews, is conditional. God made it clear to the Jews that their possession and enjoyment of their Promised Land would depend totally upon their faithfulness to Him. If they were faithful, they would be richly blessed. In fact, God said He would make them the lead nation over all the nations of the world. Deuteronomy 28:1 (NKJV) “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth.”
Can you imagine what the world would be like today if Israel had been faithful to God throughout their history and were always the leading nation in the world? What would life be like today if a God-fearing, God-honoring nation was in such a position?
However, because this was a conditional covenant God promised that if they were unfaithful, they would be cursed in many different ways. The greatest curse, which God promised to put on them for disobedience, would be their displacement from the land. He said the land would still belong to them. But if they disobeyed Him, they would be removed from it.
This curse actually happened to the Jews twice. The first time was in 606 BC when they were captured by the Babylonians and taken into captivity. It lasted for 70 years and is clearly prophesied in Deuteronomy 28:47-57. The second time they were removed from their land began in 70 AD, and is graphically described in Deuteronomy 28:58-67.
Now, the important point to keep in mind is that God’s gift of the land was unconditional. The Jews were given an irrevocable, eternal title to their land. But the use and enjoyment of the land was conditional upon their obedience.
ILLUSTRATION: Let me illustrate the point to you with a modern day example. Let’s say you have a teenage son who has just turned 16 and has acquired his driver’s license. You decide to bless him by buying him a new car and putting the title in his name. The car belongs to him, but you make it clear to him that his use of the car will depend upon his obedience to the law. If he gets a speeding ticket, the car will be locked up in the garage for a week. It will still belong to him, but he will not be able to use it. – This is how it was with Israel and their promise land. God would not take away their ownership to the land. It was theirs forever. But if they did not obey Him, He would take away their privilege of using and enjoying the land. Ownership and possession are not the same thing.
Have you ever wondered why, when the children of Israel were led back to the Promised Land, God told them to remove and destroy the people that were living there? It doesn’t seem right by our standards, does it? If those people were living there first, what right did the Israelites have to force them out, and take what was theirs? Some of those peoples had been living there for close to 500 years.
Well, the reason is because the Promised Land was rightfully the Jews to begin with through the Abrahamic Covenant. The peoples that were living there, even though they’d been there for hundreds of years, were in essence squatters.
It would be like if you had a piece of land that you owned the title deed to and for some reason or other had to leave the land. And maybe you ended up having to be gone for 30 years or more. And while you were gone, squatters moved in and took over your land, maybe they even built homes and villages on it. The land is still yours. You still pay the taxes on it. The deed’s in your name, but someone else is living on your land without your permission.
And those people then bring with them their own religion and culture which is foreign and evil. Yet you’re still gone. And after 30 years there’s probably more than one generation living on your land. And this new generation has been living there all their lives. It’s the only home they know. Now all of the sudden you return. Who has the right to the land? You, the owner? Or the people who have been living there for thirty years? Legally, you do. You hold the title deed. It’s in your name.
This is how it was with the Israelites and their Promised Land, and how it is today as well. The land did and still does belong to the Jews. But because of their disobedience and long absences from the land, “squatters” have moved in. And some of them have been there for centuries. Many generations have come and gone without the rightful owners making an appearance. And now that they have returned and have had their land returned to them by the rest of the world, even though it was rightfully theirs to begin with, there has been an explosion.
III. The Ejection of the Jews
The Children of Israel entered the Promised Land under the leadership of Joshua, Moses’ successor. They proceeded to occupy the land for the next 750 years. But they didn’t hold up their end of the Land Covenant and in violation to God’s commands, they didn’t destroy everyone who was living there. They made peace treaties with some of them and intermarried with Canaanites and Hittites, etc., and ended up worshiping their false gods.
God sent prophets like Elijah and Elisha to call them out of idolatry and remind them of the conditions of the Land Covenant, but the people persisted. Finally, God raised up foreign armies as His sword of discipline and allowed them to conquer the Jews and take them into captivity. The Assyrians dispersed the ten Jewish tribes living in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. When the remaining two tribes in the southern kingdom of Judah failed to get the message, God allowed the Babylonians to capture and exile them.
Seventy years later, in His grace and mercy, God allowed the Jews of Judah to return to their land and rebuild both Jerusalem and their sacred temple. But the Jewish people persisted in rebellion for the next 400 years, and when they rejected their Messiah, God allowed the Romans to conquer and disperse them worldwide, in fulfillment of prophecy.
But again, the crucial point to keep in mind is that the Jews did not lose their title to the land. They lost only their use and enjoyment of it, as a punishment for their disobedience. To this day, the Jews have remained under discipline. They may be back in a portion of their land, but their enjoyment of it is being deterred by constant Arab attacks.
Now that’s a pretty simplified version of the land crisis, but it’s the truth that you won’t hear on the nightly news. There are actually many more factors involved in the conflict. And I hope you are beginning to see why this is such a controversial topic. It is easy to feel sympathetic to some of those who have been displaced by this conflict. But what I’ve told you is only the very beginning. We will continue with this study next week.
Sermon Sources:
Hagee, John. “Jerusalem Countdown.” 2006.
Reagan, Dr. David R. “The Middle East Crisis in Biblical Perspective.” Lion and Lamb Ministries.
Reagan, Dr. David R. “The Land of Israel, To Whom Does It Belong?” Sept. 1998. Lion and Lamb Ministries.
