(The following material is taken from Biblical Backgrounds of the Troubled Middle East, Guy N. Woods, 1991; Theft of A Nation, William W. Baker, 1989; History of the Christian Church, Vol. 5, Philip Schaff, 1910.)

After years of diplomacy, the tension between the Palestinian Arabs and Jews is more tense than ever. President Clinton is extremely disappointed over recent fighting. He had hoped that he could end his presidency with some success in this difficult area. But success has eluded more than one President and more than one country’s involvement in the Middle East.

Why is this problem so intractable? What is the source of such hatred and bitterness? Whose side, if any, should we take in the dispute over ownership of the land of Palestine and Jerusalem? Does it belong to the Jews or to the Palestinian Arabs?

These are not only political questions, but biblical ones as well. Politicians often make grave mistakes in the Middle East because they do not know the biblical issues and claims that are made.

I want to address briefly the history of the conflict in the Middle East. It is a long one expanding over 4000 years; from Abraham’s day to ours.

The names and the places. The "land of Israel" has had many names over the years. Some are Canaan---a land occupied by Amorites, Hittities, Jebusites and others; the Promised land, the holy land, Palestine (the oldest name), and State of Israel. One can drive over Israel at a moderate speed in about three hours traveling N-S; about 60 minutes going E-W. It is about 1/5 the size of Virginia.

The Middle East extends from the Mediterranean Sea to Russia and includes Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Transjordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Israel is Jewish; Iran is Persian though mostly Muslim; the rest are Arabs. The land is mostly desert, but underneath are among the richest oil reserves known in the world.

The story begins in Genesis 12 with three promises that God made to Abraham, one for each of the first three verses. 1) A land that I will show thee, 2) A great nation, 3) In thee shall all the families of the earth will be blessed. Years passed and Abraham still had no son. "And Abram said, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?" (15:2.) God replied that Eliezer would not be the heir. (15:4.) This conversation shows that Abraham and Sarah were concerned over the promises God made. Sarah was probably embarrassed that she could not provided a son for Abraham.

The childless couple had been in Canaan for ten years waiting on the Lord. Finally, Sarah suggested that Abraham have a son by the Egyptian handmaid, Hagar. (16:1-3.) This seems to be an effort to help God out of his problem. He promised something that could not be fulfilled, they thought. When Hagar conceived, she despised Sarah. This bitterness and conflict was just the beginning of four thousand years of hatred and bloodshed! Sarah treated her harshly and Hagar fled. Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born. (16:16.) But an angel of the Lord encouraged Hagar to go back to Sarah and submit to her. (16:9.) She returned and stayed in the house until Isaac was born 14 years later. Abraham was now 100 years old. Sarah saw Ishmael "mocking" when Isaac was born. (21:9.) Then she cast them out of the house. This was a grievous thing to Abraham to watch his son walk away from the household. He pleaded with God, "O that Ishmael might live before thee!" (17:18.)

God made some strong promises to Ishmael. His name was given by an angel, and it means "God has heard." He heard Hagar’s cry of affliction. The angel promised "I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall be numbered for multitude." (16:10.) God promised Abraham that he would make of him "a great nation" because he was his seed. (21:13,18.) There were twelve Arab princes as well as 12 Jewish ones. (Isaac---17:20; Ishmael---25:16.) There was also a daughter born to Ishmael and one to Jacob, making the family arrangement identical.

The Bible follows the history of Isaac and his descendants because the promise of the Redeemer was through Isaac, not Ishmael. However, we should remember that God promised a great nation from Ishmael as well. He also is a son of Abraham, but not the son of promise. Ishmael is the father of the Arab nations today; Isaac is the father of the Jews.

The Arab people. We know little of Ishmael’s history, but both sons were present at Abraham’s burial (25:9); and Esau married one Ishmael’s daughter (28:9). Ishmaelites are mentioned in Judges 8:24 and Psalms 83:6. They are referred to as desert dwellers who pitch their tents in Jeremiah 3:2 and Isaiah 13:20. They were among those who tried to interfere with the rebuilding of the temple after the Babylonian captivity. "Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian" are named in Nehemiah 6:1. During the Maccabean revolt, they fought with the Greeks against the Jews. (1 Maccabees 3:10.) When the Jews were driven off the land of Palestine in the two captivities and the Roman destruction, the Arabs quickly expanded and possessed it. The Arabs took over the Jewish lands and occupied it for 1900 years.

The life of the Arabs is nomadic. Even today, professionals among the Arabs long to take a vacation from the city and stay for a couple of weeks in the desert living in tents. They had little central government with small tribal groups often suspicious and jealous of one another.

For five hundred years following the Apostolic Age, their religion was Sabianism---the worship of the sun, moon and stars mingled with some Jewish and Christian concepts. In the sixth century AD, Mohammed sought to destroy idolatry among the Arabs and promoted faith in one God. He denied the Son and the Holy Spirit, but firmly planted the concept of one God.

Mohammed was born on August 20, 570 AD in Mecca, a city of modern Saudi Arabia. He claimed to be a direct descendant of Ishmael. He was illiterate, had a moody disposition, tendency toward epilepsy. He married a rich widow 15 years his senior, who made it possible for him to spent much time in meditation and pursuing his religious interests. He claimed to have received a vision from Gabriel in 609 AD.

Mecca resisted his claims as a prophet of God; he and his followers fled to Medina. For Muslims there are three sacred places on earth. They are Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem. Antagonism developed with the Jewish leaders who rejected the claims of Mohammed. Muslims turned their backs to Jerusalem and prayed facing Mecca. Mohammed taught, "There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet." Further, he said, "The sword is the key of heaven and of hell." He promised his followers paradise if they died in battle.

At Medina, he had 800 Jewish men killed with the sword when they rejected his doctrine. He sold their women and children into slavery. The proceeds were divided among his followers. The Muslim faith spread like a wild prairie fire over the Middle East.

Mohammed sought to rid the Arab world of idolatry and united vast numbers of Arab people. To this day, there is a strong monotheistic faith among the Muslims. But Mohammed lacked moral qualities necessary for good character. He was cruel, vindictive, often merciless, not hesitating to kill and rob. He claimed revelations from God when it was convenient for him, when he wanted another wife. He had revelations to put aside previous revelations. His followers were limited to four wives; he was not so limited. As death approached, he forbade his wives from remarrying and ordered perpetual bereavement for him. Mohammed died on June 8, 632 AD.

After Mohammed’s death. Knowing his followers, he predicted that they would divide into 72 factions upon his death. There are at least 50 different warring groups among Muslims, but the two major parties are the Sunnis and the Shi’ites. The largest group is the Sunni and the most militant is the Shi’ite. Suddam Husein and his political party are Shi’ites. Though divided, their goal is to conquer all who are "infidels"----any who reject Mohammed as the prophet of God. Their design is world dominion; their method is conquest by the sword and the gun.

Jihad is the name used by Muslims to refer to "holy war." There are many terrorists who kill Jews, Christians, and all who stand against them. An Arab drove his bomb-laden truck into the Marines’ compound in Beirut, Lebanon, Oct. 1983, killing 241 US Marines. The driver shouted shortly before impact, "Allah Akbar! Jihad! Jihad! Jihad!" There is little doubt that Arab extremists were involved in the suicide bombing of the USS Cole recently in Yemen.

The rise of Islam or the Muslim faith is another major factor in the conflict that exists between Muslims and Jews. We could add that it also increased conflicts with Muslims and everyone else.

#3: The Crusades (1096-1270 AD)

The Crusades were armed pilgrimages to Jerusalem under the banner of the cross. (Schaff, 214.) The Crusades show how intense was the interest in Jerusalem from a third party---the Christians. Some voices in the Catholic Church of the Middle Ages began to raise concern over the control of Jerusalem by those who rejected the deity of Jesus and regarded his followers as infidels. The immediate causes of the Crusades were the ill treatment of pilgrims visiting Jerusalem and the appeal of the Greek emperor, who was hard pressed by the Turks. Also, earlier the Muslims had invaded Italy and Gaul in an effort to conquer Europe. (Schaff, 221.)

Remember that there are strong feelings about Jerusalem in three major religions. Christians had their beginning in Jerusalem. Jesus died, was buried, and arose just outside the city. He ascended from the Mount of Olives. Jews had their temple on Mount Moriah and worshipped God who placed his name there. Muslims believe that Mohammed ascended from the Dome of the Rock. The Catholic Church led the effort to free Jerusalem from Muslim control.

Farmers abandoned their fields, laborers their tasks, fathers their families, people of all classes, even children, motivated by frenzied enthusiasm, joined the effort to recapture Jerusalem. A young shepherd boy of France named Stephen (age 12) led thousands of children; also Nicolas (age 10) from Germany gathered an army of 20,000! They were soon defeated, sold into slavery, and abused.

The battles for Jerusalem shifted from one side to the other. Finally, Jerusalem was conquered by the Crusaders in 1099 AD, and lost in 1189; reconquered in 1229, and lost in 1244. When the Crusaders first conquered Jerusalem, they established a government called the "Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem." It was overthrown with indescribable slaughter on both sides of "Christians" and Arabs.

The Crusades actually stirred the followers of Islam to a greater zeal when they saw that they could actually lose Jerusalem. Some had become complacent and settled into secular pursuits. The unity the Arabs achieved by their success in the Crusades was maintained until modern times.

The tensions between Palestinian Arabs and Jews had their beginnings with the bitterness between Sarah and Hagar, Ishmael and Isaac. The tensions increased with the militant Shi’ites, extremists among the followers of Mohammed. He taught his followers to use the sword to force "infidels" to submit or die. The Crusades added a new dimension to the conflict---now Jews, Arabs, and Christians were all involved in fighting and bloodshed.

Jesus taught mankind the way of peace. He is the "Prince of peace." He is the only real lasting solution to the conflicts among men. The sword is not the key to heaven and hell. The Gospel is the key to redemption. Jesus is the Savior; the seed of Abraham. Mohammed is not the prophet of God. His way is the way of death.