Dear Editor,
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade had announced that the Jamaican government’s position on the war between Hamas and the State of Israel, is that there should be a cease-fire and that a State of Palestine should be created. It was the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, that this would bring about lasting peace between the Palestinians and the State of Israel.
There are two assumptions of this announcement that I am questioning in this letter: (1) the assumption that the State of Israel is illegally occupying Palestinian Land; and (2) the assumption that giving back some of this land to the Palestinians, so that they may have their own government, army, etc., may bring about peace, which has been lacking, since on May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was restored, after 2,000 years of being scattered in different nations.
Let us consider what God, in the Holy Scriptures, teaches about the first assumption. God promised to give to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the land of Canaan. This promise is to last forever. Gen.12:1-3,6-7 reads: “Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed…And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land…” Gen.26:3 reads, “Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father…” Gen.28:13 reads, “And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed.” How long were the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to be the owners of the land? Gen.17:8 reads, “And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” What does “everlasting possession” mean? Ezek.37:25 reads, “And they shall dwell in the landthat I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children forever: and my servant David shall be their prince forever.” For as long as “David” is to be Israel’s King, even as long as Israel is to dwell in the land, for David is to rule over Israel “forever”, and Israel shall dwell in the land “forever”. Therefore the land was given to Israel forever. So then, they are not illegally claiming that the land is theirs, for they are the legitimate owners of the land.
Since the land belongs to Israel, it does not belong to the Palestinians. Taking away some of Israel’s land and giving it to the Palestinians, is a violation of God’s Covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, which is still in effect, for “David”, that is, Israel’s King, who is also known as the “Messiah”, is to rule over Israel forever, and at the same time, Israel is to dwell in the land forever. So then, this Covenant is still in effect.
Let us now consider the second assumption in the light of God’s Prophetic Word. There will be no peace between Israel and the Palestinians, yes, indeed, including Iran and Russia and all other nations of the world, until “David”, “the Messiah”, namely, Jesus of Nazareth, comes again. Immediately before He comes again, “all the people round about” Jerusalem, that is, “all nations”, will gather against Jerusalem to destroy the people of Israel. (See Zech.12:2; 14:2) It is at this time that “the Lord” shall “go forth, and fight against those nations”. (See Zech.14:3) When “the Lord” come, Israel will see that his hands and feet and side have the scars of having been “pierced”, and this will cause the whole nation at that time to repent of their ancestors’ rejection of Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, and God will cleanse them and forgive them. (See Zech.12:9-10; 13:1) Then “the Lord shall be king over all the earth” (See Zech.14:9), and there will be no night, but just “one day”, and “there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited”. (See Zech.14:11)
Therefore Jamaica should never endorse a Palestinian State, which involves taking away some of Israel’s God-given land, for Israel has the legitimate right to the land, and furthermore, no matter how much land is given to the Palestinians, it will not result in peace, for the Palestinians say: “From the river to the sea, Palestine shall be free”, meaning that from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, all of this land will be owned again by the Palestinians, and Israel, who is alleged to be an illegal squatter on Palestinian land, should be completely removed from the land. What we need to do is to “pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (See Ps.122:6) and pray that God will hasten the day when Israel will no longer be spiritually blind or hardened in heart, but that all of the nation will accept and follow Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of David, as their Messiah, that is, their Saviour and King. (See Rom.11:25-26) We need to pray that more and more of the Palestinians become Christians, and see the need to live in peace with Israel and bless them, for if they do these things, God will bless them, and the people of Israel will not feel threatened by these people living peacefully among them. (See Gen.12:3)
I am ,
Mr. Joseph Buckland
