Last week, we noted three historical backgrounds to the present tensions between Palestinian Arabs and Jews. They were: 1) the bitterness that developed between Sarah and Hagar, Ishmael and Isaac, 2) The militant attitude of the Muslims promoted by Mohammed, and 3) the provocations of the Crusades stirring the Muslims to a greater zeal to defend Jerusalem and Palestine.

Here are some more pieces of the complex puzzle to the problems over Jerusalem and Palestine.

A fourth major part of the conflict between Jews and Muslims is the Zionist movement. This is an effort to repatriate Jews to Palestine and Jerusalem. It was begun by Theodor Herzl in the 1890s. He wrote a book entitled The Jewish State: An Attempt at a Modern Solution to the Jewish Question. The Arabs, at first, ignored such a notion, but when they saw that large numbers of Jews were prepared to enter Palestine, set up their own government and religion, they responded with suspicion and antagonism. The seeds of the present conflict came from that tension.

The British government had great power in the Middle East before WW1 and had military control of Palestine following the war. The British were sympathetic to the Zionist movement and prepared a declaration stating their views. It is known as the Balfour Declaration, named after the Prime Minister, A. J. Balfour. The French and American governments supported the Declaration. It contained only 67 words, but took 2 years (1915-17) to complete because of the difficult political position of the British. Here is that declaration:

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"His Majesty’s Government views with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country." (Baker, 9.)

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This statement ranks among the most infamous ever penned as to double talk, subtle deceit and subterfuge. This third clause was added, supposedly, to protect the native, majority population of Arabs residing in Palestine. What is clear is that Britain, France and America clearly supported the establishment of a national home for Jews in a land that belonged to the Palestinian Arabs.

The British had announced intentions to be fair, neutral, and supportive of peace for both Jews and Arabs. But the Arabs, who once held Britain in high esteem, were angered by the Balfour Declaration. The Arabs resented Britain for selling them out to the Zionist Organization. A deep distrust developed between Jews and Arabs in Palestine.

The Holocaust. In the 1930s and 40s, a new problem developed. Some in Germany so despised the Jews that they sought a way to eliminate them from their society. The infamous Adolph Eichmann led the effort to execute all the Jews in death camps. Thousands from America and around the world died in an effort to stop German domination of the Jews and the world. After WW2, a committee recommended that the Jews in Europe be allowed to enter Palestine and set up a government. Almost immediately 250,000 Jews prepared to leave Europe and enter Palestine against the wishes of the Arabs. Remember that the Arabs had been living in Palestine and Jerusalem for most of the past 1900 years. The homes and farms belonged to them and their children.

In 1914, only 3000 Jewish farmers lived in Palestine. At the close of WW1, in 1918, there were 644,000 Arabs and only 56,000 Jews (or 8% of the population). By 1948 when the British left Palestine, Jews increased from 8% to 32.5%. During that time (1918 to 1948), the Jews increased ownership of the land from 5.7% to 78%!

Great Britain found themselves being attacked diplomatically on both sides by Jews and Arabs. The British decided to move out of the Middle East. The day that Britain withdrew, Jews and Arabs went to war.

Arab nations---Syria, Transjordan, Iraq, and Egypt---fought against the Jews. When no one prevailed, the UN proposed a month’s truce. During this time about 700,000 Arabs became refugees, displaced people and so remain unto this day. They felt that Israel took their land of Palestine. Aged Palestinian Arabs living in tents will tell you how much it hurts to see Jews living in their homes and on their farms. The Jews argue that the Arabs left on their own, but war conditions made it impossible for them to stay with their families. However, not all the Arabs left Palestine. Over 100,000 Arabs live in Jewish occupied territories.

The displaced Arabs live in camps of extreme destitution. The rich Arab countries offer no financial help. They purposefully keep them in poverty so the news media will report their plight. This will keep attention on the rights of the Palestinian Arabs to their homeland.

Other wars followed the 1947 war---one in 1956, 1957, 1967, 1973. The famous "Six Day War" of June 1967 forced the Arabs from all property and political rights. About 1.5 million Palestinians were driven from their homeland. The goal of the Arabs was and is to drive the Israelis into the sea. But the Jews have been very successful in the wars with the Arabs, primarily because they have a strong financial and technological advantage. They are supported by the United States, receiving large amounts of money in annual foreign aid. They kill Palestinian Arabs with fighter planes and guns made in the US. When the US defeated Iraq in Desert Storm in 1990, large military supplies were left stockpiled in Israel for future use and for Israel’s present use.

The fears of the Arabs came true in 1948 when Israel was declared to an independent state with full support of the American and British governments. The UN proposed a partitioning of the land for the two peoples. But to whom does the land belong??

We have covered 4000 years of history from Abraham to the present day. From 1500 BC to AD 70, the Jews possessed the land of Palestine and Jerusalem, except for the captivities. From 70 AD to 1948, Palestinian Arabs occupied the land. The Jews came into Palestine in large numbers and took control again of the ancient city and country.

The formation of the State of Israel completed the work begun with the Balfour Declaration in 1917. The Zionists’ and even the Crusaders’ dream has, at least in part, been realized.

The conflict continues to unfold. The PLO has announced a desire to form a state of their own alongside the Jewish State, claiming part of Jerusalem. Hillary Clinton caused an uproar by stating her views favoring this move while the US position is against it.

Here is the basic problem. Israel lays a biblical claim to the land from the promises of Abraham. Arabs lay claim to the land because they have lived on the land since the first century. Great Britain and supporters forced the Balfour Declaration on the Arabs. There has been, according to William W. Baker, a theft of a nation! The United States has supported Israel against the Arabs. There are three major factors at work here:

1) Sympathy for the Jews following the holocaust in Germany.

2) A misunderstanding of the biblical claims concerning Israel’s right to the land. The promises to Abraham have been fulfilled. Jesus is not going to return to set up a kingdom in Jerusalem. Zionists are wrong in their claims. Protestants misunderstand the nature of Christ’s Church and Kingdom.

Zionists and Premillennialists demand a literal interpretation of Old Testament prophecies. They misunderstand that the church today is the "Israel of God." (Gal. 6:16.) The church is referred to as "the twelve tribes scattered abroad." (James 1:1.) According to the false claims of the Zionists, Israel must be restored to the land of promise and Rome must come again to world power. To see how utterly ridiculous these claims are, note Isaiah 66:18-20.

"It shall come that I will gather all nations and tongues and they shall come and see my glory. . . . And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters (couches), and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the Lord, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord."

On the assumption that this prophecy is to be understood literally, certain difficulties appear: a) All families of the earth, however far diffused, must make the trips alluded in the verse. Those who live in Australia, many thousands of miles from Palestine and the holy city, will have quite a considerable distance to travel! Some might argue that such is possible with the use of modern travel on the airlines. But the verse says that such would be done upon mules and in chariots. We could call these "mules of the millennium!" (Woods, 9-10.)

b) These mules must be swift since they must make the trip to Jerusalem and back every seven days! This would be especially true of those mules and their riders who must travel every seven days from Hawaii, Antarctica, New Zealand and the North Pole. c) Further, the travel problem in Jerusalem would seem to be unparalleled by anything we have seen in our largest cities.

The truth is, neither this prophecy, nor any other predict the restoration of the temple services, animal sacrifices, or other forms of Jewish worship. These prophecies were fulfilled in the return of the Jews from Babylonian captivity and from the other nations into which they had been scattered. All of these matters occurred long before the beginning of the Christian Age. (Woods, 9-10.)

3) As a shield against communism. However, there is a communist party within the Israeli system, but none within the Palestinian political system. There was a miscalculation about the Arabs. They did not turn to Russia because they were sympathetic philosophically to communism. They turned to them because they were the only ones who showed sympathy to their cause. The Arabs would be among the last to ever accept the communistic philosophy because of their strong faith in one God.

Today many Zionists are disillusioned over their dream. Jews are leaving the land that they once desired so. About 3.2 million Jews live in Palestine and Jerusalem, but approx. 2,000 per month are leaving. Nearly half of those leaving settle in the United States. New York has over 300,000 Jews as residents. The Jews number over 5 million in America. Fewer Jews are immigrating to Israel. The constant fighting and bloodshed cause many to abandon the Zionist hope.

The lesson that we should learn from the conflict in Palestine, according to William W. Baker, Theft of A Nation: "Injustice is the reason for conflict."