The Truth Behind the “Facts”

I don’t pretend to be a Bible scholar – not even close. But I have read and studied enough Scripture and had it amplified over many years by pastors I trust and admire, to have a basic knowledge of God’s Word. Ultimately, identifying good versus evil in today’s world, although not always crystal clear due to many conflicting voices, is certainly possible. The question is, how do we know when our definition of “good” fits the actual truth of the situation? When Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” that was His ultimate proclamation of His total goodness and righteousness, and that only He is worthy to be followed and worshipped. Surely He is the only source of real Truth – the rest of us can only try to approximate it based on His teachings and whatever revelations His Holy Spirit provides.

All of the above is stated to make clear that my version of truth in the current Israeli-Hamas conflict is very different from that espoused by Dr. Chuck Baldwin in some of his recent articles. I see the following fallacies or omissions in Dr. Baldwin’s position that the Palestinian people have a superior claim to the land of Israel than the current occupants.

1. Dr. Baldwin’s apparent disregard for Biblical prophecy concerning Israel is astounding. First, Ezekiel 37:20-22 is God’s Word pertaining to gathering Israelites from other nations back to their original homeland at a future time. Clearly, this prophecy was not fulfilled prior to the sacking of Jerusalem by Rome in 70 AD, which Dr. Baldwin claims was the end of the Israel of the Bible. Therefore, in rejecting his fallacious claim we can only surmise that this prophecy is being fulfilled with the re-establishment of the nation of Israel in 1948. Second, Ezekiel 38:14-16 clearly predicts a massive invasion of Israel at a future time by its northern neighbors (do Russia and Iran come to mind?). There is little doubt that whomever “Gog” represents, they are against God since He will ultimately destroy Gog’s invaders as prophesied in Ezekiel.
2. When looking for the truth, watch how people of influence answer or refuse to answer legitimate questions and how defensively they react. Exhibit A – Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-MI, who refused to acknowledge that Israel’s Defense Force was not responsible for the bombing of a hospital in Gaza even when video evidence clearly showed that an Islamic Jihad weapon was used. Rep. Tlaib has espoused such an extreme position in her support for Hamas (disguised as support for Palestinian “independence”) and hatred of Israel that even others in her party are denouncing her for “fanning the flames of anti-Semitism.” Does Dr. Baldwin realize that his position dovetails with that of Rep. Tlaib and other “Squad” members of Congress?
3. If Israel is as bloodthirsty and corrupt as Dr. Baldwin claims, then they would not be warning civilians in Gaza to leave or seek shelter in advance of anticipated Israeli retaliatory attacks on Hamas. This is not to say that Israel is guiltless in the 75 years since it was re-established as a nation in 1948. However, when you are surrounded by enemies who fanatically hate you 24/7 and you are threatened with attack at any time, there may be a tendency to overreact at times. I can only imagine living in that situation, not just for a short time but for a lifetime. Israel may have overstepped in resettling certain disputed territories, but it has never initiated an unprovoked attack on any adversary in its modern history – certainly not of the scope and magnitude of the recent Hamas attack.
4. Time and again in Israel’s post-1948 history, the hand of God has been apparent in protecting the nation.  How else can Israel’s overwhelming victory in the 1967 Six-Day War be explained? How was it that Israel (with U.S. airlift assistance) overcame a surprise attack by Egyptian and Syrian forces on their holy day of Yom Kippur to again prevail in 1973? If what Dr. Baldwin claims about the illegitimacy of the current state of Israel were true, how is it that they have survived repeated attacks from enemies vastly superior in numbers for the last 75 years?
5. Hamas is a terrorist organization that controls the Palestinians in Gaza. They were elected to this position of control back in 2005 and have never relinquished that control. To claim that the Palestinian people are somehow innocent pawns in the current situation is disingenuous at best. They elected their leaders and should have known what the risks were of doing so. A nagging question that Dr. Baldwin did not address is: Why won’t neighboring Arab states accept Palestinians in their countries since they seem to be so sympathetic to them? Could it be that certain Arab states and Iran are using the Palestinians as a cudgel to force a “2-state” solution on Israel? This is an arrangement that would surely hamper Israel’s security even more than the current situation, yet one that Israel has stretched, under U.S. pressure, to accept only to have the Palestinian Authority turn them down.

Those who, like Dr. Baldwin, claim in so many words that Israel brought on this vicious attack due to its behavior, are showing their true colors when it comes to anti-Israeli, anti-Jewish prejudice. And those colors are not pretty.  

Finally, I have no plans to read any of Dr. Baldwin’s sources for his positions. As I’m discovering in reading an expose on Trump’s presidency by two New York Times “reporters,” such books may come with a pre-conceived set of beliefs that often do not match reality. I would suggest instead reading a book called “The Everlasting Hatred” published several years ago by Hal Lindsey. This book provides an accurate, Biblically-based history of the conflict between today’s Muslims and Jews that started thousands of years ago with the births of Ishmael and Isaac.