The Right is arguing about Israel, so who should we listen to? Scripture

We are at a critical moment. The conservative right—the loudest and last defenders of Israel—is fragmenting and devolving into contentious infighting. Division over whether to support Israel is crippling the movement and pushing conservatism into dangerous waters—waters unprotected by the favor of God, which He promises to those who bless Israel.

Just as Israel’s war against Hamas has wrapped up, a new front has opened. And the main combatants are right-wing thought leaders and podcasters.

This new attack Israel faces is much more dangerous than any attack from Hamas. There is a perceivable dark shift in the conversation about Israel. We have come to expect antisemitism from the godless left. But Republicans who put “God, Family, Country” on coffee cups, bumper stickers, and t-shirts are turning on Israel. Why?

It’s because we live in a Biblically illiterate time, with self-professing Christians detached from the Truth of Scripture.

We as Believers must stand up and stand against the Satanic attacks against Israel—and that is exactly what they are. Satan hates God and all who are His, both old covenant and new.

So how should America’s foreign policy relate to Israel? It depends on who you ask and when you ask them. A wide swath of conservative thought leaders have held multiple positions on Israel, as they do on most political issues. I will continue to hold firm to the Truth of the Scripture for how we understand and love Israel.

And the most critical are the most Biblically illiterate. I refuse to let Believers be pied-pipered away by the seductive voice of antisemitism.

Until recently, mainstream criticism was confined to mild, mostly economic grievances. But this new rightward lurch against Israel is something new. Now, we are watching individuals with bitter hatred for Israel elevated to platforms of unprecedented reach here in America. To those not tethered to Biblical Truth, the smooth, sweet rhetoric that is being preached on podcast pulpits across America will ensnare and mislead.

The relationship between the American government and the Israeli government should not trump our individual hearts toward the nation of Israel. We are held accountable for our thoughts and actions, and what is important to God should be important to the Believer.

So as the conversation on the right has shifted from how to support Israel to how to cut off Israel, we must return to Scripture and answer the question: Why support Israel?

Let’s begin with the foundational passage—the Abrahamic Covenant. This is the go-to passage of Scripture that folks cite in support of Israel, but it’s just the beginning, not the end.

Genesis 12:1-3, “The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

I will make you into a great nation,

and I will bless you;

I will make your name great,

and you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you,

and whoever curses you I will curse;

and all peoples on earth

will be blessed through you.”

God chose Abraham. God could have chosen a different man to start the path to the redemption of humanity, but He didn’t.

Through the line of Abraham comes Jesus, and through Jesus, salvation is made available to all who put their trust in Him. Jesus is the blessing by which all peoples are blessed. In fact, confirming the genealogy of Jesus makes up the entire first chapter of the New Testament. Read Matthew 1 for all forty-two generations from Abraham to Jesus. The second part of the Abrahamic covenant is fulfilled through Jesus, and the first is still unfolding.

In the ancient days of the Old Testament, Israel was a great nation. But that nation was scattered because of their disobedience to God. 2 Kings 17 lays it out: “In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and had feared other gods and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced….

The people of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam did. They did not depart from them until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, as he had spoken by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.

The final line, “until this day,” points to another Old Testament prophecy now fulfilled—Israel’s return to its land. Jeremiah foretold it, who writes in chapter 33, “Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security. I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before. I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me. Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise, and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.”

The entirety of that prophecy has not yet come to pass. While Judah and Israel have been brought back from captivity, Israel has not yet been cleansed from the sins of rebellion against God. To ignore the sins of Israel—past or present—would be to ignore Scripture itself. We must recognize and respond.

So how then are we to respond? David gives a suggestion in Psalm 122:

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

“May those who love you be secure.

May there be peace within your walls

and security within your citadels.”

And as Believers, our mindset should be - Kingdom first. Jesus has given clear commands, and if we are led astray by people who come in Christian clothes, but we get too preoccupied with what is going on across the world, we may miss the opportunity He has placed right in front of us.

That command is simple, Matthew 28:19-20: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

We are freed from the pressure of making new Believers—that is the work of God through the Holy Spirit. Our task is to make disciples.

My final message is this: God is a covenant keeper. Deuteronomy 7:9 says: “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.” So tread lightly and live thoughtfully.

Let us walk in power and wisdom that comes from the Holy Spirit, not being deceived by the schemes of the enemy. We must be a people so familiar with the Word of God that when we hear it misquoted or misinterpreted, we can stand firm.