The Bible predicts that in the future Israel will be subject to the rage of the nations as never before. In fact, it predicts that one day “all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.” (Zechariah 12:3 NASB)
In that same passage of scripture, the prophet warns that there will be a “siege… against Jerusalem….” (Zechariah 12:2b NASB) The world has not yet laid siege against Jerusalem, but the anger that will culminate then is already building now.
Throughout modern history, there has been much antisemitism. However, from AD 70 to 1948, there were Jews, but no Israel. As in other prophetic scenarios, the reestablishment of Israel makes antisemitism a meaningful sign of the end of the Age of Grace.
After the Nazis murdered six million Jews, most of the non-Muslim world retreated from antisemitism. Or institutionally suppressed it. That lasted several decades.
King Solomon once wrote: “…there is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9c NASB) Today, the echoes of Nazi hate are again being heard in the western world.
Recently, eight prominent members of Britain’s Labour Party resigned from their party. They did so in protest of the new rise of antisemitism within the party.
Luciana Berger is one of the Members of Parliament (MP) who resigned. She wrote: “I cannot remain in a party that I have come to the sickening conclusion is institutionally anti-Semitic.”
Other Labour members called her a “disruptive Zionist” who supported a “murdering government.” A well-known Labour leader, Margaret Tyson, called the Israelis, “…murdering Zionest (sic) bastards. Their NAZI masters have taught them well.”
Joan Ryan is another MP who resigned in protest. She said, “The Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn has become infected with the scourge of anti-Jewish racism.”
Corbyn is the Labour Party leader. He is a fierce critic of all things Israel. He has a long history with antisemitic groups.
The Guardian newspaper reported: “Some of Labour’s most influential figures are urgently warning Jeremy Corbyn to change his approach to antisemitism… as more senior politicians reveal they have already decided to quit the party.”
But Corbyn says he plans to change nothing. Since his rise to power in 2015, long hidden antisemitism within the Labour Party has been coming out of the woodwork. One member of Corbyn’s “shadow cabinet” has suggested that the world relocate Israel to the United States. Another, the former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, defended that proposal by declaring that Hitler had been a Zionist!
Some of these MPs are obviously nut jobs, but that doesn’t make them any less dangerous. In fact, with the deep political troubles facing the Conservative Party because of Prime Minister Theresa May’s lousy handling of Brexit, Jeremy Corbyn may be within reach of becoming Britain’s next prime minister!
And that scares many British Jews. Last year, three major Jewish newspapers published a joint article. They warned of “the existential threat to Jewish life in this country that would be posed by a Jeremy Corbyn-led government.”
But that existential threat is not limited to the United Kingdom. Last week, The Atlantic published an article headlined, “Europe’s Ubiquitous Anti-Semitism.” Even the long-running “yellow vest” protests in France have been usurped by radicals who are trying to infuse them with hatred for French Jews.
Last year, the number of antisemitic acts in France surged by 74%. And on February 19, vandals defaced 80 graves in a Jewish cemetery with painted swastikas.
Since 2006, almost 50,000 Jews have fled France because of growing antisemitism.
A few days ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Anti-Zionism is the new form of anti-Semitism.”
Irwin Cotler, the former Attorney General of Canada, believes that Israel itself has become “the collective Jew among the nations.”
In other words, Israel as a nation is being treated the way individual Jews have traditionally been mistreated. Like the Jews of history, Israel is held to a different standard of conduct. And it is the continuing target of unreasonable hatred and violence.
Just as the Bible predicted.
It seems impossible that Christians could hold contempt for the people from whom our Lord arose. But millions do.
Throughout history, many church leaders believed that Jews as a race were guilty of “Deicide.” That is the killing of God the Son.
Some prominent figures in the church held horrible views of the Jew. Those views ignored the Jewish identity of Jesus. Some asserted that Jews could not even be saved. They seemed to forget that Peter, John, Paul, and other first century Apostles were Jews! In fact, the early church was Jewish!
But the Bible makes it clear that the Jews did not kill Jesus. Love did. It was His love for us that caused Jesus to willingly lay down His life as the atoning sacrifice for all mankind.
Should we hate Jews for their national role in all of this? NO! Not for a minute! Should we throw them away? NO! In Romans 1:16, the Apostle Paul wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (NASB)
That was Paul’s pattern. Even though he was an apostle to the Gentiles, when he entered a city with the gospel, he first went to the Jews. That shows ongoing love and honor.
Has God thrown Israel away? The context of Romans 11:1 leaves no doubt that he is talking about the Jews. It asks the question, then emphatically answers it: “Has God cast away His people? Certainly not!” (NKJV)
On this week’s program, I will discuss the origins of Christian antisemitism. I’ll explain how it has assisted the rise of “Replacement Theology” in today’s church world. I will also discuss the roles of various views such as Amillennialism, Premillennialism, and Postmillennialism, and explain how the different covenants of God with Israel impact the prophetic scenario.
Don’t miss The Hal Lindsey Report on TBN, Daystar, CPM Network, various local stations, www.hallindsey.com or www.hischannel.com. Please check your local listings.
God Bless,
Hal Lindsey
