Article series: INTRODUCTION – WHO IS JEHOVAH? – WHO IS THE REAL ISRAEL – THE SCATTERING – THE GATHERING: ONE-FOLD – ONE ISRAEL : THE MODERN STATE OF ISRAEL NOT CHOSEN – DANIEL 9 AND THE PRE-TRIBULATION DECEPTION – JUDAISM ACE IS NOT A GODLY REPRESENTATION OF OT – THE BIRTH OF THE MODERN STATE OF ISRAEL – THE DIFFERENCE (between Biblical Israel taking of Canaan and modern Israel taking of Palestine) – What side should we take in the Palestinian and Israeli conflict?
God let Biblical Israel conquer the land by wars through the leadership of men such as Joshua and David. What is the difference between the previous take of the land and that of the modern state of Israel?
The history of God leading them to the promised land by Joshua is used as an excuse or evidence it is God’s will that they do the same today.
The difference between the past take of the land and the modern take of the land is great, and the principles behind the taking.
In Israel’s history, there are two exodus’, one from Egypt and another from Babylon. The first time they were to take the land of Canaan promised to them by force. The second time it was to be given back to them by a decree. That means the second time when they returned after the Babylonian captivity, it would not be re-conquered but returned after it had been mostly deserted for 70 years. God had asked those Jews left in the land to remain there, but they fled to Egypt instead. Still, God made sure the land was ready for the return. No armed conquest was necessary.
“And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years” (Jer. 25:11)
According to his law, God had declared what would happen to the land if they were unfaithful and were taken from the land: “Then the land will enjoy its sabbath years all the time that it lies desolate and you are in the country of your enemies; then the land will rest and enjoy its sabbaths” (Lev..26:34).
As prophesied it happened, the land lay mostly desolate before being given back to them. Moreover, the prophecy of the 70 years of desolation was followed by the prophecy of their probation in the land for 70 prophetic weeks, ending some three years after Christ’s death.
After Christ’s Israel was scattered, the Jews were scattered, and the land was taken over by other nations one after the other. Rome, Byzantine, Arabs, Crusaders, and Ottomans, to mention the main groups. Through DNA genetics, we can see that Palestinians have Levant ancestry and have lived in the Middle East era for many generations. Some Jews continued to live there as well, some were converted to Christianity, some to Islam, and some remained Jewish. The genetic pool is very mixed.
The land of Israel was already inhabited when the Jews started their large immigration in the 20th century and because it was populated a conflict arose between the Arabs and the Jews, a conflict that continues to this day.
This time the State was not given to the Jews peacefully, but through war and terrorism. This time, the land had not been left “barren” for them. There was no prophecy about their return after the land enjoying her sabbaths. It had been almost 2000 years since the land was controlled by different groups and inhabited by populations of several religious directions.
The question is, can this establishment of modern Israel be compared to the establishment of Israel when they first took the land from the Canaanites? Is it a similar situation?
The conditions for taking the land the first time
Although God had given the land to Abraham and his grandson Jacob, he had not been allowed to conquer it in his day. Although the Canaanites had settled themselves in a land that had been promised to Abraham’s family tree, he could not just drive them out. This would result in bloodshed, and God values human lives. He said to Abraham that it was not enough that he was chosen, or had a right to the land, God would not take it by force before the right time: “But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full” (Gen 15:16).
This means that possessing land that does not belong to them, taken when it was barren, was not a crime enough for God to punish them. God is a governmental justice system watching over all people. He did not just stand for the right of Israel later on, but told Israel not to take specific areas of land on their way to the promised land: “Do not provoke them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as his possession” (Deut.2:5) He said the same about the land given another nation. Neither of those two nations was faithful to God at the time, but He cared for their rights anyway.
As Jesus said: “That ye may be the children of your Father who is in Heaven. For He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matt.5:45) God do see to the rights of other nations as well, whether they give Him glory or not.
He also judges. And the land given to Abraham was inhabited by other nations settled there, however as long as God could try to reach them, He would not permit Abraham to shed any blood. The dividing of the territories most likely happened when recorded in the Bible: “And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan” (Gen 10:25) There was a division after Gods order, and Canaan had not continued south-west as instructed but chosen Canaan to dwell as it was a strategic trade route between Egypt and Mesopotamia, the descendants of Ham and Shem. Even so, God would not chase them out of the land, He loved them and wanted to reach them first.
God’s judgment before Israel took the land only came over five cities in Canaan, the two most known are: Sodom and Gomorrah. God saved them through Abraham when the Kings of Mesopotamia took them captive. Instead of being happy the people dwelling in the land promised to him were taken from there, Abraham defended them and helped free them so they could continue living there. He did not exploit the situation to his benefit. Later, the “cry” from the city became great, their evil behavior was affecting many and caused people to complain to God. And God judged them and destroyed them after an investigation and through His justice system. But the rest of the land, there was still hope for. And God gave them another 400 years to not only move but to receive the truth and be saved.
By the time Israel was led to take the land, the country was under universal judgment and Israel had been called to execute God’s judgment over them.
In no way were they allowed to think God gave them the land because they were some sort of great species with rights before others. They were chosen because they had agreed to represent God’s laws and because the heavenly court had decided that Canaan had to be judged to save the rest of mankind. They were the Aztecs of the Levant.
God said: “Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Understand therefore, that the LORD thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked people” (Deu 9:5-6).
Taking the land was not just something they could do because they were descendants of Abraham, but it was tied to the great ungodliness of the nations possessing it and their special calling. This meant and was written, that if they do what they did, they will lose the right to it as well. The takeover of Canaan began after God miraculously took down the walls of Jericho. But when Israel went to take the city of Ai God did not want to help them because someone had stolen goods from Jericho and hid it in the camp. This shows us the strict policy God had when taking the land, that Israel had to be faithful while performing God’s judgment upon the nations.
These principles are seen throughout time in the Bible. When they went to war with the Philistines yet were unconverted themselves, God would not go with them. (1.Sam.4:11)
When they wanted to execute judgment upon the tribe of Benjamin for their sins, they had to humble themselves and receive atonement for their sins first. (Judg.20)
In no way did having the right genetics secure God’s support in the wars. Every time God’s people were backslidden, God allowed the enemy to conquer part of their land until they finally lost everything.
God explained his decision like this: “Then take of them again, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; for thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord GOD; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her. And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you; Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.”
When Israel was worse than the other nations, God would in no way defend them against them” (Eze 5:4-8).
We see this principle throughout the Bible that genetics and being a descendant of Jacob means nothing if they do not keep the covenant with God. God tolerates a lot of wickedness without abandoning a people without rights, but He cannot tolerate His name being dragged into being the defender of cruelty. God’s principles always come before genetic heritage. Even so, even through the Arab population, both Abraham and Jacobs’s seeds are represented in the land they inherited. Many Muslims are descendants of ancient Judah and Israel, converted to Islam. If religion does not matter, only genetics, then they may just as well live there as the Jews. If it does matter, then neither has a right over the other.
In one way, Abraham was like the first Christians. Although having the right to the land, they were not told to take it by force but had faith that it would be their inheritance after their death and the world was made new. They were not to go into battle for it.
To be allowed to possess God’s land, the Jewish people have to:
– Be in a covenant with God
– Received atonement
– Follow God’s principles and laws
– Not be like the ungodly nations.
From a Christian standpoint, the Jews of modern Israel do not match these criteria.
The Sins of the Canaanites versus the Sins of the Palestinians.
The sins of the people of Canaan, making them subjected to God’s judgments, are so vile the fullness of their sins is not written down. We know they made human sacrifices and did severe sexual immorality. Mostly what we learn about them is in God’s warning to Israel to not do as they did.
“The land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants” (Leviticus 18:25).
God said to them: “You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices.” (Lev.18:3) Among the practices God explained they did were all forms of incest, sex with animals, homosexuality, sleeping with other spouses (infidelity), and human sacrifices, even child sacrifices. The fear and trauma a society experiences with these types of behavior leads to mental illness, violence, and aggressive behaviors, which would put everyone on edge.
He says: “Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: .. (For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled;) ( Lev 18:24 &27).
Sexual immorality is the downfall of a nation in more ways than one. Either children will be abused or it breaks up families and leaves children without a parent, usually without a father. Many children lose their sense of direction and worth and seek confirmation in all the wrong places.
In addition, God mentions witchcraft, trafficking, transgenderism, idol worship, and the worship of nature.
When it comes to the modern-age Palestinians who had to move to give way for the Jewish immigrants, they are not particularly known to do much of these things. In Islam, most sexual immorality is forbidden, along with the worship of idols, they don’t sacrifice humans, they forbid homosexuality and they do not permit witchcraft. The Palestinians are not accused of trafficking either, and if there are cases it is far less than in Western countries such as the USA, North Africa, and South Asia. All of Canaan’s sins are now normalized in the West after the decline of Christianity, and even among the secular Jews that now live where Palestinians were driven from.
Israel has not upheld God’s laws against incest. Although outlawing incest among minors, it is not forbidden if someone is over 21. When it comes to giving rights to the same sex and transgenders, Israel is a leading voice in the Middle East and Asia. Being the first in Asia to recognize same-sex unions. “Tel Aviv was referred to by the Calgary Herald as one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world” And “According to users of the website GayCities, it was ranked as the best gay city in 2011” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Israel)
The killing of babies for convenience and prosperity, or abortion as it is called, has been allowed in Israel since 1977 and has a high percentage compared to its population. When the US tried to tighten abortions, Israel called the decision “sad” and responded by losing its abortion regulations even more. (https://www.johnstonsarchive.net/policy/abortion/ab-israel.html, https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/abortion-rates-by-country
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-us-supreme-court-politics-health-israel-68e6acadda5b62ff400a7846d0bae147)
“An Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics survey published in 2021 found that among Israeli Jews over the age of 20, about 45 percent identified as secular or not religious, while 33% said they practiced “traditional” religious worship” (https://www.timesofisrael.com/religion-has-outsized-role-in-israel-yet-most-of-its-jews-arent-really-observant/)
What about infidelity? There might not be a statistic on this, but marrying a divorced is also considered infidelity in the Bible. On October 9, 2023, a report showed a shocking 47.3% divorce rate in Israel. (https://www.wjtv.com/business/press-releases/ein-presswire/660674663/divorce-rate-in-israel-as-high-as-47-3/)
Modern Israel is just reflecting other Western countries that have rejected God. They reflect the moral practices of paganism. In addition, the Israeli university and state uphold the evolution theory, rejecting their God and giving credit to “nature” for our creation. If you make the Sabbath a holy day but reject the Creator, you are not really honoring the Sabbath.
Israel is just one of many countries that have the sins of Canaan on their portfolio, but the point here is, are they more aligned with God’s laws and more deserving of the country than for instance the Arabs or Palestinians that had the land before them, who also have some genetics that goes back to Jacob? Is the situation here an ungodly people in the land that needs to be judged? Were the Palestinians’ sins reached their fullness and they needed to make a way for God-fearing Jews instead? Clearly not. In many ways, they are more respectful of Biblical morals than modern Israel is.
Therefore, it is clear that ungodly Palestinians being killed or moved to make room for the faithful Jews not practicing these same evils, is not present in the modern conquest of the land, especially not in 1948.
The conditions, and the situation, are not the same. God did not leave the land desolate for them to return, He is likely not fulfilling a judgment on a terrible morally deprived Palestinian community, and He is not using modern Israel to uphold His name and rule. Even the terror attacks Palestinians have made to secure their position in the land, Israel has done to them as well when they wanted the land.
The first time they conquered Canaan, God walked before them into the Jorden River and then dwelled among them, this time there was no temple and no Shekhinah, no sacrifice, no ark, and no atonement. God did not lead them into the country this time. And although these things were not present when they returned after the Babylonian captivity either, then there was no conquest. They got their permission through a decree, not through warfare and conquest.
The two situations therefore cannot be compared.
Even righteous Abraham could not take the land if the wickedness of the people there had not reached its probation. Even if the land was promised to him! Even the children of Jacob could not take the land when they were in opposition to God when there were people already living there. They were sent to die in the wilderness.
The damage to God’s name
Israel’s war is fought with severe cruelty, making people all over the world think the situation we see today is parallel to the one in the Old Testament. By this, God looks bloodthirsty, unreasonable, and unrighteous. Which is just Satan’s motive, to make us doubt God is good.
An ungodly image of ancient Israel’s conquest of the land is created by mirroring it with modern Israel. Satan can manipulate man’s view of the conquest of the land that happened thousands of years ago easily. When the West went to fight ISIS, few cared to show sympathy because of ISIS’s cruelty and deprived morale. They cut innocent people’s heads off and taught their children to do the same. Most people wanted to see them both defeated and dead. They feared them. This was in part the case in ancient Canaan, many nations were relieved they were judged. They even wanted to judge themselves at first, as when the Mesopotamian kings took Sodom and Gomorrah. The modern state of Israel selling the idea that all Palestinians are like ISIS, even the children, is not believed by the world watching. These invasions are viewed as genocide rather than a freedom operation. This is the great difference in how things are viewed. There will always be wars in our world under human rule. We accept that wars are necessary in cases of extreme cruelty. That is why a human rights court was established, and the world decided to judge German leaders after World War 2. Sometimes things are so bad that war is needed to save mankind. When the US came to Europe it saved Europe from Nazi Germany. It is deemed necessary to fight the greater evil so it won’t terrorize the lesser evil. People have a sense of justice. When the State of Israel insinuates all Palestinians are bad and need to be suppressed, the world doesn’t believe them or agree with them. When it is insinuated that the Biblical conquest of Canaan was similar to the Jews taking Palestine, God is deemed unfair.
The ungodliness of the Canaanites was terrible. Their value of human life was very low. They suppressed and abused each other daily, and harmed children and the weak in society. We know this because God explained it in His reasons for destroying Sodom, a Canaanite city: “This was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good” (Ezek.16:49-50)
The laws against evangelizing Christ to Jews, and hindering Christian Jews from returning to the land, all show a people still opposing God and thinking they can take the land on their own, make their cornerstone the rejection of Christ, and use God’s name to their advantage.
All this places God in a difficult situation where He has to defend His honor and expose the lies.
Can Jews take the land by force?
When biblical Israel was unfaithful to God’s command, God would not help them take possession of the land, even when He had promised it to them. We see this story when Moses and the people are gathered at Kadesh and first rebel against God. When God tells those who rebelled they will not be given the land and have to die in the wilderness, they decide to defy God and take it by force. God did not stop them from trying to take it, but He did not go with them either. The result was that they were defeated by the inhabitants and chased away.
When the next generation is finally allowed to conquer the land, they first have to receive God’s atonement to cleanse them of their past sins so that He can go with them this time.
Jews can by force try to possess the land without meeting God’s criteria or being obedient to Him, but in the end, without God’s support, they will lose.
God has not permitted the Jews to take the temple mount. Old Jerusalem is still a melting pot of different Abrahamic religions and not just Jewish. They have their corner, like Christians and Islam do. But regardless of what they do, God will likely not give them the mountain or let them rebuild the temple.
“Who kept the sea inside its boundaries as it burst from the womb, and as I clothed it with clouds and wrapped it in thick darkness? For I locked it behind barred gates, limiting its shores. I said, ‘This far and no farther will you come. Here your proud waves must stop!” (Job.38:8-11)
The power of victimhood.
Jews had long been disliked in the Christian world, partly because of their disdain for Christ, calling him the antichrist. But also because of how they behaved. Getting sympathy for the Jews was a hard task. The gruesome attack on them by Hitler’s national socialist party served to get Jews the favor they needed to be given the land and to drive out those living there, without politicians daring to speak up, fearing being categorized with Hitler.
Many Christians now had compassion and believed Jews should be safe in their land. For those who believed this had to happen for Christ to come, this was the beginning of the end time.
Victimhood is a powerful tool, so powerful that many fake it to achieve their goals. Even though Jews really were victims during the war, the state of victimhood has no purity if it is used to manipulate. Many nations have attacked themselves to create sympathy so that they can battle their enemies. In warfare, it is called false flag operations.
This is the power of victimhood. The idea is that if someone is a victim, they are also good and in the right. But being a victim does not make the victim either good or right. Just because someone is evil, does not make the victim good. Yet, the power of this misconception of good and evil gives people an advantage by presuming victimhood to gain public favor, and through it, power and strength.
Although Israel had once been slaves in Egypt, the only time they were to use this state of victimhood for anything, as a commandment by God, was to treat strangers in their land better than how they were treated in Egypt. They were to use it to sympathize with people in need, and with others, and not abuse power or copy the behavior of the Egyptians. God asked them to use their experience as victims to guide them into not suppressing others. “Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Exo 22:21).
Israel has done the opposite, they use what happened to them as an argument to suppress and rule. Around the world, they were discriminated against, suppressed, and even victims of several massacres. Now they do the same to the Palestinians. Discriminating, suppressing, and massacres. They do what has been done to them.
Israel in the bible was to trust in God to protect them, as long as they were loyal to him. The modern State of Israel isn’t concerned about loyalty to God, they do not wish to follow His rule and take their pride and trust in themselves, their military, and their military alliances. In the Bible, this behavior was called that of a prostitute (Ezek.16:28, Isaiah 31:3)
So why did God permit The State of Israel, and how will it all end?