The land should be given back. It is just that simple. Much of it was taken in war from its rightful owners. Some of it was taken fraudulently and with malice. So it should be given back – every square inch of it, and without delay!
Such a move would end the eternal wrangling over the problem of Israel in the Middle East. It would once for all solve the dilemma of the West Bank. It would bring the present peace initiatives to an appropriate, just, and honorable end. How can such a radical move be implemented? It can be accomplished simply by a three-point peace plan.
POINT #1 – KING ABDULLA, GIVE IT BACK!
Your family came up from the Hejaz, or what is now Saudi Arabia. They were driven north as a result of the religious and political struggles of that country after the turn of the twentieth century. At that time the stronger Saudi tribes forced your family out. The British, it seems, had made too many promises to too many people. They owed a debt to your great-grandfather, who was also named Abdullah, and to pacify him they gave him the vast track of land lying east of the Jordan River. That was the “East Bank” that we never hear about anymore. The only problem with the arrangement was that the land had already been given. It had been set aside by the Balfour Declaration of 1917, and approved by the San Remo Conference of the League of Nations, as a home for the Jewish people.
So you see, King Abdulla, your family took almost three quarters of the land that had been legally given by the nations of the world to found a homeland for the Jews. You took half of Manasseh’s land, and all the historic homelands of the tribes of Gad and Reuben. You also took beautiful Gilead, and perhaps you would even try to steal its proverbial balm (Jeremiah 8:22; 46:11).
This land you call Jordan never belonged to your family in all the history of the world, so now you must give it back to its rightful owners, the Jews. Some may question whether or not the prophets include the Trans-Jordan in the end-time scenario (Ezekiel 47:18). Yet, it cannot be debated that the Jews have much more historic claim and right to the land than you do.
Also, King Abdulla, you must forever renounce your claim to the “West Bank,” or Judea and Samaria as it is known in the Bible. Remember, as a double insult, your country invaded this helpless land during the war of 1948, and later annexed it. All the nations of the earth said you were wrong in doing so, except Britain and Pakistan. Even your Arab brothers rebuked you. You had no claim to the land then, and you have none today. Even though it is no longer under your direct control, you have no right to be involved in any negotiations for the land whatsoever. Neither do you have the right to assist in Palestinian plots to take it over. So give it up!
POINT #2 – MR. HARIRI,* GIVE IT BACK!
Yes, Mr. Prime Minister of Lebanon, did you know that you are trying to build your ravaged country on land that is not yours? Perhaps this is a big part of your problem, and it no doubt accounts for some of the agony your people have suffered. Much of your land was promised to Israel centuries ago as their exclusive and eternal possession (Gen. 15:17-21). It seems that Moses, that great leader of Israel, was more interested in seeing “…that fine hill country of Lebanon” than any other place in Israel (Deut. 3:25).
Perhaps all this accounts for why you have resisted Israel so vigorously and fought against her in three wars. You then allowed the PLO to freely enter your country so that they could build a terrorist infrastructure aimed at destroying Israel. Now you have allowed the Hizbollah from Iran to do a similar thing. And you wonder why you are cursed. Shame
on you!
The people of Israel have now come home from the nations as the prophets said they would (Isa. 43:5-6; Jer. 31:8). But, Mr. Hariri, the prophet Ezekiel also said that in the end-days the returning tribes of Israel would live in part of your land (Ezek. 47:15). When the great leader, Joshua, was old, even he instructed the people to be sure to allocate the land of Lebanon to Israel (Josh. 13:6-7). That includes Tyre, Sidon, and your mountainous regions. If you have a decent bone in your body you will now call off the Hizbollah terrorists, apologize to Israel and give Israel back her land – all of it.
POINT #3 – MR. ASSAD – GIVE IT BACK!
It is easy to see why you are so nervous, Mr. Assad. Your country, Syria, sits right in the middle of stolen property. You see, God promised that the land of Israel would run “from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates” (Gen. 15:18). It is the oldest recorded and universally published title deed in the world, made by the Creator himself. Your country, Syria, is centered on that very tract of land. Much of what you call your land was given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (the Jewish people) as an eternal inheritance (Gen. 17:8). It was specifically not given to Ishmael your Arab ancestor (Gen. 17:20-21).
It is crystal clear why your late father was a ring leader in four foolish and futile wars against Israel. Now it makes sense why you continue to make your country a haven for anti-Israel terrorist organizations and also why you have supported and supplied the Hizbollah terrorists in their attempt to destroy Israel. It is also clear why your family has impoverished your country in order to keep it senselessly armed to the teeth. You have been trying to get rid of the rightful claimant to your territory – the nation of Israel.
But you are not the only one to blame. The rulers of your country have now been fighting against Israel for almost 3000 years. Your kings, Ben-Hadad and Hazael, persecuted Israel far back as the days of Elijah the prophet. . After the Jews returned from their first dispersion it was your king Antiochus 1 (Epiphanes) who polluted the Temple and almost succeeded in annihilating the Jewish faith. Your country might be called the most persistent antagonist of Israel in history.
But you and your people have aroused the anger of the Almighty God. Perhaps that is why the prophets make no mention of your restoration or blessing in the future. In fact, the Prophet Isaiah clearly states that your capital, Damascus, will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins (17:1). Perhaps you have already gone too far. Repent while there is a chance, and quickly give back the land to its rightful owners.
And while things are being re-allocated, Mr. Mubarak* of Egypt, you had best remain silent. Israel relinquished a portion of its God-given inheritance to appease your country. Israel has yet to claim the land fully to the “River of Egypt” or the Wadi El-Arish, which bisects the Sinai Peninsula from North to South. This border was eternally established by God. Also remember, it was your people who invaded Israel and virtually created the problem of the Gaza Strip.
And you, Mr. Saddam Hussein* of Iraq, quite possibly even you could be sitting on a portion of land that was long ago given to the Israelis. You see, the biblical northern boundary of Israel, the Euphrates River, flows through your country. Could that be why you hate Israel so, and why you sent missiles against her cities in the Gulf War? You, too, had best calm down and be quiet.
This is a simple, biblical plan to settle the problem of the land. Some may think this peace plan looks a little crazy. Yet, we know from the Bible that in the end-days, the lands of the Middle East will be apportioned according to a plan similar to this. All other plans, including the current plan (there always seems to be one), will then look a little crazy.
-Jim Gerrish
*This article was first written back in the 1990s during the Oslo Peace accords. It is now updated for the new peace accords going on in 2014. The program is always the same – to rid Israel of her God-given heritage. Only the names change. Racif Hariri is no longer Prime Minister of Lebanon, but Najib Mikati has been acting PM since 2013. Of course, Hosni Mubarak has been replaced in Egypt by General Abdel el-Sisi. Saddam Hussein was a casualty of the Second Gulf War and the country’s present PM is Nouri al-Malki.
Courtesy, Bridges For Peace, Jerusalem. Updated Feb. 1, 2014.