In Defense of Israel

If a Nation Desires Suicide
(by R.P. Edwards)

If a nation desires suicide
If a nation…wants to die
Then, by all means, hurt His children
The apple of His eye
You’ll find each blow you give them
Each hateful, cursing blast
Is returned one hundred fold…until
Your nation’s life…is past.

If I forget you, O Jerusalem, May my right hand forget her skill.
(Psalm 137:5)

You know, as I sit here (the air conditioner buzzing in my right ear and the voices of two of my children speaking an inaudible something in the distance) I feel a bit of a heaviness at the subject. Why is it necessary to even write about the defense…the support…the unflinching loyalty…to Israel? As I’ve said before and I will, most likely, repeat an indeterminate amount of times (your indulgence, please) there are foundations in my life that effect my actions and judgments. My marriage is one such support. The children, another. The duty to country, another. But the foundation below these…and everything else…is my faith. I really do believe that there is a God; that His benevolent hand makes a difference in my life and, I truly believe that His blessing or curse determines whether a nation prospers…or falls. And, one might ask--as far as nations go--what determines his blessing or curse? The answer is simple: deeds.

There’s a profound darkness in the land; a profound shallowness, and callousness…and sadness. For over half a century our society has been pruned, and primed, pulled and pummeled by those who would war against the knowledge of God. Denying, and even rewriting our heritage, they ascribe our greatness to the measure of man, the workings of flesh and, if some would dare cling to the notion of “one nation under God,” they are mercilessly maligned and belittled. And, bad enough that our society is reaping the harvest of the wretched seeds sown, now our curse is made even more sure by pressuring the very land and people whom God promised: “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curse you.” Truly it is insanity. A death wish. A masochistic path born of ignorance and elitism. I don’t know about you, but when I see Israel squeezed and pricked and prodded by their so-called strongest ally…I fear. Yes, for Israel. But I fear even more for my own country. For, regardless of the boastings made by our self-anointed wise men, we must understand--if we are to survive--that our destiny is intertwined with that little plot of land between Egypt and Assyria. That little plot of land where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob once sojourned. That little plot of land where an almighty God took the form of a carpenter and, with blood and wood…built a bridge…to Himself. Yes, heaven help us if we abandon them. But if we do, rest assured…Heaven, surely, will not.