Can A Genuine Christian Be Antisemitic? Depending on who you ask, the answer can either be yes or no… It’s complicated! But it doesn’t have to be. I have witnessed people getting very emotional over that very topic. I have seen people get judgmental, verbally abusive, and divisive to validate their position on either side of that fence.
People do not have to agree on everything, but there must be clarity between them when specific words are used. So first, two words must be defined: “Christian” and “antisemitism.” Then, three questions must be posed: Are Christians perfect? Are the Jewish people without fault? Does criticism of Israel and the Jewish people always constitute antisemitic rhetoric? Some of it might sound very basic and possibly even condescending to some of our audience, but remember that clarity is the goal here.
Who is a Christian?
Over the millennia, the word Christian has morphed. Without getting overly theological, we must define biblically who is a Christian. “Christ” is simply the English translation of the koine Greek wordย Christos, which itself is the translation of the Hebrew wordย Mashiach, translated Messiah in English. It is part of Yeshua’s title as in Yeshua Ha Mashiach, generally meaning “Salvation the anointed one.” Kings and high priests were “mashiach” with a small “m,” and only Yeshua was Mashiach with a capital “m.”
The term Christian, then, describes a person who is a follower or disciple of Christ. It is not an ethnic state, and people are not born into it, even though some people use the term that way. To be a genuine Christian, one must make a confession of faith in the finished work of Yeshua. At that moment, the person is forgiven, redeemed, and saved for all eternity.
What is Antisemitism?
I have worked on this definition for the last 26 years, and as one would expect, it has evolved over the years. It started short and simple: “Antisemitism is the hatred of the Jews, characterized by thoughts, words, or deeds against them.“
It didn’t take me long to realize that I had to also include “Israel” in that definition, so my second iteration was as follows: “Antisemitism is the hatred of the Jewsย or Israel, characterized by thoughts, words, or deeds against them.“
Then I also realized that most of antisemitism, if not all of it, is extremely irrational. Some people are antisemitic but have never met one Jewish person, or what about groups such as “Queers for Palestine”, how much more irrational could you be? So the third version was born and read as follows: “Antisemitism is theย irrationalย hatred of the Jewsย or Israel, characterized by thoughts, words, or deeds against them.”
Soon after that, I also came to the conclusion that it was irrational because Satan was behind it, and only he can make the irrational sound and look rational, so I added another word, and the revised version read: “Antisemitism is theย irrational and Satanicย hatred of the Jewsย or Israel, characterized by thoughts, words, or deeds against them.“
This was the labor of 25 years of research, study, teaching, writing and speaking on the topic. I thought I was done, but then, October 7, 2023 happened and the whole world turned on Israel AND on those who supported Israel and the Jewish people. You no longer have to be Jewish to suffer from antisemitism, you simply have to show any level of support and you are a target. I call it “Collateral Antisemitism” and I added one more word for the current definition now reading as follows: “Antisemitism is theย irrational and Satanicย hatred of the Jews,ย Israelย or their supporters,ย characterized by thoughts, words or deeds against them.“
I cannot guarantee that this will not evolve again, but it looks pretty tight as it pertains to global end-times antisemitism in 2026.
Now onto the next three questions to help us determine if a genuine Christian can be antisemitic.
Are Christians perfect?
As I already mentioned, Christians are people, and people are all imperfect sinners. We are fallen creatures from Adam forward (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23), desperately in need of a Savior. We are equally redeemed, forgiven, or saved by the blood of Yeshua (justification), but we are not perfect yet (we are undergoing a process known as sanctification). We will be perfect the day we are in glory in God’s presence (Glorification). Until then, we still live in a broken body, plagued by a sin nature (the flesh) fighting the Holy Spirit in us. So no, Christians are not perfect.
Are the Jewish people without fault?
Guess what, Jews are people too, so Jews are not without fault. It was God’s original desire that we would be a light to the nations (Isaiah 42:6, 49:6), but, in a perfect display of the free will God gave us, we rebelled (2 Chronicles 30:7). God made eight covenants with mankind, five of them with the Jewish people, and four of these five are eternal, unilateral, and unconditional. As unconditional covenants, they are not based on Israel’s performance, but on God’s character only. There is nothing that can be done to annul, alter, or transfer the promises and covenants made between God and the Jewish people.
This doesn’t exonerate the sins of Israel, it simply doesn’t take them into account for the covenants to hold (the exception being the Mosaic Covenant). This being said, Jewish peopleโas “chosen” as they areโ are not saved because of their ethnic origins or status in God’s economy. They need Yeshua just like everybody elseโsomething that Rabbi Nicodemus learned the hard way (John 3: 1-15). It is time to recognize that Jewish people are part of the human race and as such are seen by God as sinners like the rest of the planet… no more, no less!
Does criticism of Israel and the Jewish people always constitute antisemitic rhetoric?
One of the strongest argument against supporting Israel, is that Christian Zionists wholeheartedly give their allegiance to the Jewish state at any cost. It is unfortunately true, but in a minority of people blinded by their infatuation for anything Jewish. We must tread carefully, though, because there is a fine line between constructive criticism of Israel and the Jews and antisemitism.
No, we do not have to agree with every decision made by the Knesset or any Jewish entity or personality. This coming June, the Dead Sea region will hold the largest gathering of LGBTQ people on the planet. For those of us who hold to a biblical view of gender identity (biological man or woman only, Genesis 2), we do not have to condone such an event, and yet, we do not have to hate the participants or ostracize them.
To accuse all Israel and all Jews of pedophilia, homosexuality, and demon possession, like some internet antisemitic influencers choose to do, is definitely antisemitic. So, no, the Jews do not get a free pass for everything they want to say or do, but criticism must be unbiased. If it leads to any delegitimization, demonization, or double standards (the 3 Ds of Nathan Sharansky), then it is antisemitism, and it must be exposed and opposed.
So, can a genuine Christian be antisemitic?
The short answer is YES! Why? because Christians are flawed and antisemitism is a sin. This is not a green light for Christians to mistreat Jews and boycott Israel, but it is still a reality that we cannot escape.
If a Christian is antisemitic, it is almost certain that they either don’t read their Bible or that they interpret its contents allegorically. They might a nominal Christian, a misled Christian or even a defeated Christian, but they are Christians nonetheless. Anybody taking the Bible seriously and reading it from a grammatical/historical consistent context will grasp the importance of Israel and the Jewish people in God’s program.
Genesis 12:3 tells us that we can either bless or curse the Jews. There is no sitting on the fence; we bless, or we curse. We automatically do one of the two if we ignore one by default, so staying neutral and not blessing ends up in a curse.
Psalm 83 affirms that when people hate the Jews, they really hate God,ย “Theyย make shrewd plans against Your people, Andย conspire together againstย Yourย treasured ones. They have said, ‘Come, andย let us wipe them outย as a nation, that theย name of Israel be remembered no more.’ For they haveย conspired together with one mind;ย Against You they make a covenant‘” (Psalm 83:3-5).
Incidentally, God is affected when His chosen people are affected, as we learn in Isaiah 63:9, “In all their afflictionย He was afflicted, And theย angel of His presence saved them; In Hisย love and in His mercy Heย redeemed them, And Heย lifted them and carried them all the days of old.“
The Christians who hate Israel will miss a few jewels on their crowns as they slap God in the face or poke Him in the eye, but they are Christians. All a person has to do to become a Christian is to genuinely believe in the finished work of Yeshua of the Cross on their behalf. I don’t like it, but it is all that is needed.
Throughout history, Christian antisemitism was committed by many people who called themselves Christians but weren’t. Today’s antisemitism coming from evangelical Christians is wrong, it is a sin, and it is committed by Christians who are burning the bridges between Church and Synagogue all over again.
Read your Bible to find out that Israel and the Jews are all through it and are very important to God. They are so important that God has placed Israel in a position of heralding the return of the King at the end of the seven-year Tribulation when they corporately proclaim “Baruch haba Bashem Adonai”ย (Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.)
It is ironic and very sad that the very people who are antisemitic are also proclaiming to love a Messiah who is Jewish in His humanity, they read a Jewish Bible, and they rely on Israel to initiate the Second Coming of Yeshua. How hypocritical is that?
