Category Archives: Israel

Whose Promised Land? – Realities and Possibilities Today (Part 1)

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Whose Promised Land? (5th edition), by Colin Chapman.

Synopsis of chapter 7a – Realities and Possibilities Today

‘The Things That Make for Peace’

7.1 Zionism

Is there something fundamentally flawed about Zionism, in at least some of its various forms?

‘Zionists have generally found it difficult to come to terms with the Palestinians’.

From the outset, there was an element of deception, along with an unwillingness to understand the Palestinian position, in the Zionist project.

David Ben-Gurion: for 20 years denied the existence of conflict. …

Whose Promised Land? – Other Biblical Themes (Part 2)

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Whose Promised Land? (5th edition), by Colin Chapman.

Synopsis of chapter 6b – Other Biblical Themes: Is There Any Word From The Lord?

6.6 Suffering injustice

Both Jews and Arabs know the meaning of the word ‘injustice’:

‘The Jews look back to the Dispersion, the ghettos, the pogroms, and the Holocaust. The Arabs look back to their oppression under the Turks, the broken promises of the Western powers, the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the traumatic defeat of 1967, and the continuing occupation.’

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Whose Promised Land? – Other Biblical Themes (Part 1)

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Whose Promised Land? (5th edition), by Colin Chapman.

Synopsis of chapter 6a – Other Biblical Themes: Is There Any Word From The Lord?

6.1 A passion for truth

Jews and Palestinians each have a narrative of what is going on.  How can we form an accurate picture of the conflict, and map a path towards resolution?

Robert I. Rotberg: We should try to determine the beliefs and commitments which inform the two opposing narratives.

Edward Said: This requires intellectual honesty.…

English Puritanism and the Jews

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A precis of chapter 3 of Lewis, D. (2021) A Short History of Christian Zionism.  IVP Academic.

The hopes of the early church for Christ’s imminent return were tempered by Augustine, who held a less optimistic view of what the church could achieve in this present age.

The English Puritans found new hope in the apocalyptic writings of the Bible – especially Daniel and the Revelation.

The Puritans believed that God had a plan not only for individuals, but for nations. …

Israel’s future in dispensational teaching

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I take, as a representative of moderate dispensational teaching, C.C. Ryrie, in his book The Final Countdown.

Here is a precis of chapter 5 – ‘Israel and her future’.

1. They will return

Isaiah 11:11f speaks of a ‘second’ return from exile:

‘The first captivity was known as the Babylonian captivity, and it lasted 70 years. From it, some Jews returned to Palestine to restore Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. But under the Roman rule, the Jews were dispersed (A.D.

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Whose Promised Land? – The land after Christ

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Whose Promised Land? (5th edition), by Colin Chapman.

 Synopsis of chapter 5 – The Land After Christ

5.1 The birth of Jesus the Messiah

The annunciation to Mary (Lk 1:31-33), the song of Mary (Lk 1:46-55), the song of Zechariah (Lk 1:68-79, the song of Simeon (Lk 2:25-32), and the words of Anna (Lk 2:36-38) all testify that the promises to Abraham and David have been fulfilled in the coming of Jesus the Messiah.

These individuals, and others like them, had been looking forward to restoration of Israel and the liberation of Jerusalem, now understood to have begun through the coming of Jesus.…

God’s covenant with Abraham – from Genesis to Revelation

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Genesis 12:1–3 — Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go out from your country, your relatives, and your father’s household to the land that I will show you. 2 Then I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, so that you will exemplify divine blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, but the one who treats you lightly I must curse, and all the families of the earth will bless one another by your name.”…

Whose Promised Land? – The land before Christ

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Whose Promised Land? (5th edition), by Colin Chapman.

Synopsis of chapter 4 – The Land Before Christ

4.1 The Promise of the Land

God’s promise to Abraham is recorded in Gen 12:1-3 and is repeated many times, both to him and to Isaac and Jacob.

The were four components:

  • ‘I will give you the land as an everlasting possession.’
  • ‘I will greatly increase your numbers… and I will make you into a great nation.’
  • ‘I will make an everlasting covenant to be your God and the God of your descendants.’
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Whose Promised Land? – Crucial Issues Today

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Whose Promised Land? (5th edition), by Colin Chapman.

Synopsis of chapter 3 – Crucial Issues Today

3.1 What about the occupation?

‘The central issue in the conflict since 1967 has remained Israel’s occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank.’

‘Israel has effectively created a kind of apartheid state.’

3.2 What have been the main subjects of dispute?

‘Refugees and the right of return: what is to be done with all those who became refugees in 1948?’…

Israel and church in dispensational teaching

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Foundational to dispensationalist teaching is the idea that Israel and the church are two distinct entities.

L.S. Chafer wrote:

‘God is pursuing two distinct purposes: one related to the earth with earthly people and earthly objectives involved which is Judaism; while the other is related to heaven with heavenly people and heavenly objectives involved, which is Christianity.’

Ryrie concurs:

‘A dispensationalist keeps Israel and the church distinct…This is probably the most basic theological test of whether or not a person is a dispensationalist.

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