Is there any word from the Lord? This was the question King Zedekiah put to the Prophet Jeremiah when Jerusalem was under attack from the Babylonians – arguably the most critical point in the history of ancient Israel (Jer 37:17).

Learning from ancient Israel

Today, when Israel is at a similar critical point in its modern history – what is God saying to that nation? The people living in Gaza, Ashdod, and Ashkelon in Bible times were the Philistines, with whom there was a constant state of war, such as Samson and Delilah, David and Goliath, capturing the Ark of the Covenant and taking hostages.

The Philistines were dedicated to the destruction of Israel. They constantly made surprise attacks upon Israelite villages, slaughtering men, women and children.

The Philistines were dedicated to the destruction of Israel. They constantly made surprise attacks upon Israelite villages, slaughtering men, women and children. They loved fighting and they famously had bands of mercenaries called Kerethites (or Cherethites) who hired themselves out to other nations to fight in their wars. Amazingly, King David used them in some of his battles and then hired them for his ceremonial palace guard in Jerusalem!

Ezekiel’s prophecy

When the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem in 586 BC, the people of Gaza poured across the border into Israel and shared in the looting of Jerusalem with great joy. The Prophet Ezekiel received a word from God about this:

“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: because the Philistines acted in vengeance and took revenge with malice in their hearts, and with ancient hostility sought to destroy Judah, therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to stretch out my hand against the Philistines, and I will cut off the Kerethites and destroy those remaining along the coast I will carry out great vengeance on them and punish them in my wrath. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I take vengeance on them.” (Ezek 25:15-17).

Ezekiel uses the term ‘wrath of God’ more than any other book in the Bible and he defines the ‘wrath of God’ as a mixture of anger, mercy and love. God’s anger is in the face of injustice, oppression and the shedding of innocent blood – but He also exercises mercy because He never ceases to love people.

Vengeance is mine

In response to the current slaughter of the innocents that has shocked the world, the Prime Minister of Israel has declared the government’s intention of changing the face of the area for all time to ensure that nothing like this occurs again. We cannot expect the Israelis to obey the teaching of Jesus to love our enemies (Matt 5:44), but we can expect the Israelis to follow the teaching of their own Scriptures in regard to vengeance.

The Israeli Government needs to avoid taking things into their own hands.

“Vengeance is mine” says the Lord. The Israeli Government needs to avoid taking things into their own hands. If any of the major writing prophets of Israel – Isaiah, Jeremiah or Ezekiel – were alive today they would surely be declaring that the nation has ultimately brought this on themselves because, like the rest of the Western nations, they are a godless country.

Their leaders should therefore be calling the whole nation to prayer, just as Britain did when we stood alone in 1940, facing disaster. The whole nation prayed and God answered that prayer with the miracle of Dunkirk and the victory of ‘The Few’ in the Battle of Britain.

Joining in prayer

If the nation of Israel were called to prayer, Jews and Christians throughout the world would join them in intercession, calling upon God to deal with the hatred that has existed between the two people groups in the land for 3,000 years – a hatred that only God can solve in some miraculous way.

The prophets would remind Israel that they are supposed to be “a kingdom of priests and a holy people” (Ex 19:6). They are supposed to be different from the world. They are facing the greatest test in their modern history. If they go into Gaza destroying everything and everyone - which many would regard as understandable given the circumstances, and would be 'the way of the world' - they will lose the goodwill towards them that presently exists. They have to find a different way – and only God has the wisdom for such a task as this.

They have to find a different way – and only God has the wisdom for such a task as this.

Israel will need to react to this terrible act of aggression from Gaza in a way that is different from that of the world. It will require enormous courage and faith in God for them to act with extraordinary wisdom rather than to extract revenge.

If we believe that Israel is still a beloved people of God and that it is God’s intention to bring Jewish and Gentile believers together as ‘one new man’ in Christ as Paul envisaged (Eph 2:15), there is also an obligation upon each of us. We have to intercede with great earnestness for the leaders of Israel – political, secular, and religious – to come together in unity and cry out to God for His wisdom to guide their military response. We should also be urging our friends in Israel to contact their leaders and call for prayer and to seek the word of the Lord for these decisive days.