Tag: Peace

Judging the nations which have divided God’s land

On By Geoff HenstockIn West Bank4 Comments

I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land. (Joel 3:2 ESV)

Joel 3 is a prophecy of the conflict that engulfs Israel at the time of the end when Gog and his allies invade and overpower the Jewish state, only to find themselves overthrown in turn by divine intervention. The prophecy says that “all the nations” will be involved in this judgement.

Zechariah also speaks of how “all nations” will be gathered to Israel for this judgement, and draws attention to the fact that Jerusalem will be central to this conflict: “On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it” (12:3).

Joel 3:2 speaks of “all the nations” incurring the wrath of God for two reasons:

  1. They scattered the Jews among the nations. This has been fulfilled in the nearly 2,000 years that have passed since the Romans destroyed the Jewish state of Judea in AD 70.
  1. They have divided up my land. This is a more modern phenomenon, and may be regarded as having commenced in 1947 when the United Nations voted for the partition of Palestine into two states, one for the Jews and one for the Arabs.

In 1947 the Jews accepted the partition plan for Palestine and went on to establish the independent state of Israel in 1948. The Arabs did not support the partition plan and launched a bitter war hoping to destroy the Jewish state at its birth. They failed in that War of Independence in 1948 and 1949 and in several wars since.

69 years later, the nations of the world in general continue to support the partition of the Holy Land into separate states for Jews and Arabs. Even the Israeli government officially endorses this view.

On 15 January 2017, the French government convened a conference in Paris to discuss the Middle East peace process. Attended by representatives of 70 nations (a significant number in the light of the seventy nations listed in Genesis 10, the number of Israelites in Genesis 46:25 and Exodus 1:5, and the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 32:8), the conference reiterated support for the so-called “two state solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The United States was represented by outgoing Secretary of State, John Kerry, known for his animosity towards the Israeli government, but not by anyone associated with the administration of incoming President Trump. The United Kingdom attended as an observer only rather than as a participant. There were no representatives at the conference of either the Israeli government or the Palestinian administration.

Not surprisingly, the Palestinians supported the final communique of the conference and reiterated their view that Israel is the only impediment to a “two state solution”. It is also unsurprising that Israel expressed scepticism about the conference outcome. In remarks to his Cabinet after the conference, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said:

“This conference is among the last twitches of yesterday’s world. Tomorrow’s world will be different — and it is very near.”

No doubt Mr Netanyahu was referring to the fact that in just a few days the new Trump administration will assume office in the United States. But like the words of Caiaphas in John 11:49-52, his comments could also be read as an unintended “prophecy” of the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is interesting that, while supporting a “two state solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the United Kingdom was critical of the conference in an official statement issued by the Foreign Office:

“We have particular reservations about an international conference intended to advance peace between the parties that does not involve them – indeed which is taking place against the wishes of the Israelis – and which is taking place just days before the transition to a new American President when the US will be the ultimate guarantor of any agreement. There are risks therefore that this conference hardens positions at a time when we need to be encouraging the conditions for peace.”

This conference in Paris is just the latest in a long list of ineffective initiatives to promote peace in the Middle East. More importantly, however, it is further confirmation of the truth of the words of Joel about all the nations being judged by God because of their determination to divide God’s land.

Russia’s so called withdrawal from Syria

On By Geoff HenstockIn RussiaLeave a comment

In 2015 Russia surprised the world when it committed Russian troops and military hardware to defend the Assad regime in Syria.  With Russian assistance the Assad government was able to make substantial gains against the various rebel forces who had been threatening it.

Russia caught the world off guard again in March 2016 when it announced that its forces would be withdrawing from Syria.  Exactly what “withdrawal” means is hard to define.  It is true that many of the 4,000 ground forces that had been deployed have returned to Russia, but it also is clear that the Russians will continue to operate the airbase it built last year near Latakia as well as the naval base it has long held at Tartus (having inherited it from the former USSR).

Why did Vladimir Putin decide to withdraw (even if only partially) from Syria?  Presumably because he had achieved his objectives from his intervention.  And what has Russia achieved?  Firstly, it has saved the Assad regime, at least for the time being.  Secondly and more importantly, Putin has restored Russia’s superpower status by demonstrating its resolve to extend its geo-political reach into the Middle East.  Thirdly, Russia has frustrated the ambitions of Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to be the patrons of a reconstructed Syria.

It is clear that the Assad regime cannot hope to retain its hold on Syria in the long term; Russia’s involvement has ensured it will play a key role in determining who fills the vacuum when, finally, there is regime change in Syria.

While the United States and her allies vacillated with regard to Syria, Russia took decisive action which changed the course of the Syrian civil war.  In an article by Amotz Asa-el entitled “Russia’s Retreat? in the April 2016 issue of the Australia/Israel Review he made this observation which resonates with the scenario outlined in Ezekiel 38:

The region-wide impression that Moscow initiates and Washington responds, that the Kremlin impacts while the White House talks, and that Russia does not abandon allies the way Obama abandoned Egypt’s Hosni Mubarek, will constitute a major diplomatic challenge for the next American President.

While Israel has benefited from neutralisation of the Syrian army as a threat there is no guarantee that the forces which replace the Assad regime in Syria will be any more well disposed towards Israel than the current regime.  Israel has watched events in Syria closely to ensure that they do not impact adversely upon the Jewish state, and intervened at times when necessary to protect her interests.  She has also benefited from the Syrian civil war in terms of her regional position, in particular those nations which Ezekiel 38 indicates will be allied with Tarshish at the time of the end.  Amotz Asa-el made the point that, as a result of the Syrian civil war:

Egypt, Jordan and the Gulf states appreciate Israel as a regional stabiliser, and as an ally in their confrontation with Islamism.  The war also made Ankara reconsider its anti-Israel U-turn last decade …

Putin’s involvement in Syria has, however, impressed upon Israel the fact that its relationship with Russia is now more critical and sensitive than it has ever been.  In that context it is interesting to note Israel’s reticence to criticise Russia’s intrusions into the Ukraine.  It also is interesting to see Russia’s continued interest in seeking to help Israel in its exploitation of the major oil and gas fields recently identified off the Israeli coast.  Perhaps most remarkably, Israel now regards Russia as potential peace broker with her enemies in the Middle East.

A mere 48 hours after Russia announced its “withdrawal” from Syria, President Rivlin of Israel made an unscheduled visit to Moscow, postponing a previously arranged visit to Australia to facilitate the trip.  At that meeting Russia agreed to two requests from Israel:

  1. That Russia continue its co-ordination with the Israeli Defence Force with regard to operations in Syria; and
  2. That Russia work to restore the UN peace keeping force that, prior to the Syrian civil war, helped to maintain stability on the Syrian-Israeli border.

Amotz Asa-el concluded his article with this paragraph:

The role of peacemaker which Putin is now in a position to play is hardly what his international image currently evokes.  Nonetheless, the world opinion that does not expect him to pacify enemies is the same world opinion that did not expect him to intervene in Syria last year, or to retreat from it now.

Russia has demonstrated its capacity and willingness to intervene in long-running internecine conflict in the Middle East.  It is not hard to imagine how Russia’s intervention in Syria could be repeated in the near future a little further south.  When she does, we might expect from the terms of Ezekie 38 that the powers opposed to Russia will be as flat-footed and muted in their response as they have been in the case of Syria.

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