Having increased its population tenfold since its re-birth in 1948, Israel must have something special to pose such a big draw. Its current 8.6 million inhabitants, squeezed into a tiny strip of land the size of Wales, is made up of over six million Jews and nearly two million Arabs.
The Land of Milk and Honey
A significant proportion of the growth has come through immigration, with Jews making aliyah (returning home) from all parts of the world, in fulfilment of ancient biblical prophecies (see questions 7 and 8 in this series).
For many it is a sacrifice, as the cost of living is high. And although the nation has rapidly developed into a high-tech world leader in many spheres of the economy, there are also poor people struggling to make ends meet, especially among Holocaust survivors.
It is a heady mix of contrasts – of tension and strife on the one hand, and of peace and happiness on the other. On my visits to Israel, I was somewhat surprised to discover that the place exudes a unique atmosphere that is truly extraordinary, wonderful and other-worldly. I suddenly understood why Jerusalem is called the "city of the Great King" (Ps 48:2) and, as I meditated on the words of Isaiah while awaiting a lift from friends, I realised what Jesus must have meant when he said that if the disciples didn't shout 'Hosanna', the very stones would praise him (Luke 19:40).
No wonder Jerusalem has been a place of God-ordained pilgrimage for thousands of years - a fact that will continue to be the case in the future (Zech 14:16-19). Surely this is why such a gigantic battle rages over the city, and over Israel itself. It's a very special piece of God's real estate.1
What Goes Unreported
Left-wing media would have you believe Israel is an apartheid state, but in reality it's a beacon of democracy in an ocean of darkness and oppression. On the whole, Jews and Arabs live together peacefully, but against this background there are a significant minority of Islamic fundamentalists wishing to stir up trouble. Most of them do so because they were brought up to hate Jews – through Palestinian education and media output – rather than because they feel discriminated against. In fact, Arabs have equal rights with Jews, are represented in the Knesset (parliament) and also hold key posts in the police, army, judiciary and diplomatic service.
What's more, the mainstream media generally fail to report that many Palestinian Arabs and other Muslims actually prefer Israeli rule to that of Hamas or the Palestinian Authority, and acknowledge that Israel, for all its faults, offers them more freedom and opportunity than can be found in most other parts of the Middle East.2
For example, when Palestinian rule of East Jerusalem seemed a distinct possibility in 2000, the Israeli Interior Ministry reported a substantial increase in citizenship applications from Arabs in that part of the city wishing to escape.3
Mahdi Majid Abdallah, a Kurdish writer, has acknowledged that "unlike the terror organizations, Israel is a democratic state, not an aggressive one, and is characterised by freedom of worship and speech and a culture of peace and enlightenment".4
Yet terror attacks continue on a daily basis – knifing, shooting, rock-throwing, firebombs – and much of it goes unreported, especially if no injury is caused. I witnessed one incident that could have turned nasty, when an Arab repeatedly provoked a group of Orthodox Jews who were apparently minding their own business walking down the pavement of a main thoroughfare. Thankfully, the Jewish group refused to take the bait, trying hard to ignore him.
Threats and Tensions
But despite constant tensions within and threats from without, Israel is clearly 'home' to its citizens, who nevertheless feel an element of safety because they are among their own people and very well protected by the Israeli Defence Force, who are on perpetual alert for trouble. At the same time, Israelis live in constant fear of attack from terror groups Hamas and Hezbollah, who have thousands of rockets at the ready, while Islamic State operatives roam Syria, Jordan and the Sinai desert, their flag having also made ominous appearances within the Palestinian territories. Worse still, arch-enemy Iran continues unhindered in its development of a nuclear capability.
All this, and yet there's a tangible sense of God's peace about the place (Jerusalem means City of Peace) while Israelis are also among the happiest people on earth, according to a recent survey5 and as evidenced by the constant round of music, dance and light festivals held throughout the year, especially in Jerusalem.
Jewish people always seem to be celebrating; perhaps because they don't know what tomorrow may bring, so they are living for the moment. It is good, in one sense, that they are not intimidated into retreating behind closed doors in the face of such hostility - but not if it means they are "casting off restraint", which is what happens when people have no revelation of God's truth (Prov 29:18).
The latter condition is reflected by the fact that a massive 200,000 people joined a Gay Pride march through Tel Aviv, Israel's largest city, now known as the 'gay capital' of the Middle East. In the eyes of some Christians, this is proof that God has rejected them. But it's nonsense, of course. It is true that, as a nation, they have become as secular as the rest of us. But that in itself does not disqualify them. How many times in the ancient past did they disobey God? Yet he has never abandoned them, but has loved them with an everlasting love (Jer 31:3).
Hope for Harvest
Israel is surrounded by enemies on all sides, and many of its citizens are living in sin and outright rejection of God's commands. But still his loving arms are outstretched towards them, just as when the prodigal was reduced to feeding on pigs' swill. When the situation looked bleakest, and all hope seemed lost, he decided to return to his Father, who ran towards him and threw a party for his long-lost son, while the elder brother (the Church?) skulked in the background, self-righteously bemoaning the fact that his younger sibling had squandered his inheritance while he had slaved away ritually going through the motions of religious observance.
Today we are witnessing the beginnings of a great end-time harvest of Jews discovering Yeshua (Jesus) to be their Messiah, fulfilling Zechariah 12:10 and Romans 11:26. One powerful online video testimony of how a Jewish man became a follower of Jesus has gone viral, with the number of viewers now approaching ten million. Mottel Baleston tells of his journey to faith as part of a series produced by Messianic group One for Israel in co-operation with Chosen People Ministries.6
Even Orthodox Jews, some of whom are still virulently opposed to 'missionary' activity, are opening up their hearts to the gospel. Israel is a dangerous, but exciting, place to live. It's where the battle of the ages will be wound up, where an unprecedented revival on a national scale will take place, and where Jesus will return in glory!
References
1 There is a tendency among some evangelical Christians to over-spiritualise references to land and other physical places God has created, but the Bible is clear that we have both an earthly and a heavenly inheritance.
2 E.g. see Safian, A. Deconstructing "Israeli Apartheid". Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, 1 March 2012. Also Freedom House's Freedom in the World reports and Dershowitz, A. The Case for Israel. USA: Wiley, 2003.
3 Pipes, D. Hamas is Worse than Israel, Worse than Sharon. Middle East Forum, 13 April 2005 (updated 13 May 2016).
4 Ibid.
5 Israel 11th happiest country in the world. Ynet News, 18 March 2016.
6 Jones, R. Millions Watch Testimony of Jewish Believer in Yeshua. Israel Today, 7 June 2015.
