The past few weeks have been startling. What began as a joint US-Israel effort to bring down the Iranian regime and its nuclear ambitions abruptly shifted. Suddenly, a deal was being signed by the United States with massive concessions, and Israel fell on the receiving end of the American president’s very public ire.
Many of the President’s statements were patently absurd. From claiming that the brutal regime that controls Iran is “far less radicalized” and “loves their country” to insisting that the former al-Qaida terrorist who leads Syria would do a “much better job” combating Hezbollah—and with fewer civilian casualties—than Israel, the President successfully bewildered many Americans and Israelis.
But another comment stood out far above the rest for Bible-believing Christians: “Without me, there would be no Israel.”
From a secular standpoint, numerous conservative Americans may ignorantly nod along to this statement. The United States has supplied defensive weaponry to the Jewish State in no small quantity and stood up for it on the world stage. President Trump was willing to partner with the IDF to cripple the world’s foremost state sponsor of terrorism—a regime which brimmed with hatred of Israel, called daily for their annihilation, and was building nuclear weapons to achieve that goal.
However, a Biblical examination of the President’s claim leaves no shadow of a doubt: Israel’s existence can be attributed to no man. It was God who promised, founded, reestablished, and vowed to protect the Jewish State of Israel—and He shares His glory with no world leader.
As the Bible profoundly declares, Israel’s existence is not predicated on who sits in the Oval Office, whether its enemies acquire weapons of mass destruction, or its popularity on the world scene. The Jewish State exists today by the sovereign hand and authority of God, who promised to regather the Jews into their ancestral homeland for “His Holy name’s sake” and protect them from ever being uprooted again.
Israel’s survival is as divinely guaranteed as the prophetic words of God who swore to restore them as a nation. The same can not be said for the United States.
Perhaps the most impactful reaction to President Trump’s statement came from America’s own ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee. Though not explicitly stated as being a rebuttal to the President’s words, “Without me, there would be no Israel,” Huckabee’s impactful response was unmistakably clear.
“Without Israel, without the Jewish foundation, there would not be America,” he underscored. “We owe our very existence to what happened in this land.”
America was founded on a Judeo-Christian foundation, modeled on the Bible, down to the structure of the judicial system found in the Jewish Torah. According to America’s Founders, the Exodus account—in which God used Moses to lead the Israelites out of captivity toward the promised land—inspired and personified America’s mission to flee the tyrannical yoke of the British in search of God-honoring liberty. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson proposed that the seal of America feature the children of Israel’s exodus from Egypt.
The Hebrew Scriptures were the foundation of the natural rights found in the Declaration of Independence. Many of America’s earliest cities were named after locations in Israel—”Zion,” “Bethlehem,” “Hebron,” “Nazareth,” and numerous others.
It was these Judeo-Christian roots that profoundly differentiated America from other nations—without it there would have been no “American experiment.”
There is little doubt that ancient Israel played an integral role in the establishment of America. Yet, even the modern state of Israel is highly consequential to the United States. Through Genesis 12:3 and other passages, we understand that nations are judged—stand or fall—based on their treatment of God’s chosen people and their nation-state.
America has been tremendously blessed as a nation for its support of modern Israel, even prior to its re-establishment. America’s second president, John Adams, once stated: “I will insist that the Hebrews have done more to civilize men than any other nation. I really wish the Jews again in Judea an independent nation.” His son, the sixth President, reiterated this desire, “I believe in the rebuilding of Judea as an independent nation.”
On May 14th, 1948, the British Mandate on the land ended, Israel declared its independence, and a mere eleven minutes later, US President Harry Truman recognized Israeli sovereignty, later stating, “I had faith in Israel before it was established. I have faith in Israel now. I believe it has a glorious future before it.”
President Ronald Reagan declared, “Since the rebirth of the State of Israel, there has been an ironclad bond between that democracy and this one. Back in 1948 when Israel was founded, pundits claimed the new country could never survive. Today, no one questions that Israel is a land of stability and democracy in a region of tyranny and unrest. America has never flinched from its commitment to the State of Israel–a commitment which remains unshakable.”
The Trump Administration has been described as the most Pro-Israel in American history, and rightly so. The list of actions taken by the President under his first and second terms to bless the Jewish State is remarkable.
But amid the President’s frustration with achieving a deal with the Mullahs in Tehran, Israel suddenly seems to have become the scapegoat to explain away—in a quite irrational manner—why progress was not being made. Israel was taking decisive action against an Iranian terror proxy in Lebanon who was launching daily attacks on the Jewish State and its troops. With a rise of antisemitic rhetoric emerging from both parties, Israel’s acts of self-defense were easily accepted as the obstacle to America’s dealings with Iran.
Of course, the real obstacle is the Iranian regime itself. As the president rightly observed at the war’s commencement: “We sought repeatedly to make a deal… They didn’t want to do it… They just wanted to practice evil.” The United States continued to seek diplomacy with those who “just wanted to practice evil,” and when attempts inevitably failed to bring about a favorable conclusion and concessions were made, pointing the finger at Israel appeared to become the convenient option.
America’s support for Israel should not be predicated on whether it is advantageous to the administration. The alliance between the two nations is deeply rooted—and as Reagan stressed, should be “unshakable” as a result.
Should America’s blessing of Israel turn to cursing, President Trump will not only fail in his goal to “Make America Great Again,” he will be playing an active role in rejecting what made America Great, and God’s hand of blessing that followed.
