But, more importantly, why did this cowardly act of barbarism occur in the first place, and why has it so quickly escalated into an anti-Jewish and anti-Israel worldwide crusade? The main purpose of this paper is not to analyze the events of 7th October and the subsequent response of the Israeli government, as there are numerous other avenues covering these aspects, but to hopefully provide some broader background and context to the current crisis.
The Middle East situation is neither simple nor straightforward, especially to the western mindset. It is composed of many layers and is therefore quite complex and complicated, and cannot be even remotely understood unless one looks at these different layers. Some of these layers stretch back for thousands of years, while some are more recent. But all of these layers are connected. The very foundational layer relates to the cosmic battle between Almighty God and the adversary, named Satan, Lucifer or the devil, between the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness. This brief analysis by no means covers all such layers, nor does it pretend to cover all aspects of those layers, although hopefully it might provide some comprehension to this dynamic, a dynamic that affects every person in the entire world.
My personal perspective is shaped by having lived in Israel altogether for some 25 years stretching between 1979-2009. While there I was introduced to Jesus, I met and married my wife there and my four children were all born there.
Although most of my/our interaction was with Israeli Jews, yet there was considerable interaction with Arabic-speaking people, both Christian and Muslim. For one year I worked with physically handicapped Arabic-speaking and Jewish young adults and did all that was required in such a capacity. For three years in the mid-1980s I/we lived in what was then a totally Muslim village, Silwan (the City of David), while many of my work colleagues and staff in several work situations were Arabic-speaking people. Just as in any part of the world, there are pleasant and unpleasant Israeli Jews and there are pleasant and unpleasant Arabic-speaking peoples.
In the years before the first
Intifada
(an uprising of violence) against Israel inspired by the Arab leadership, which began in late 1987, I visited Gaza on numerous occasions, and even spent time walking through the refugee camps. Back then they were overcrowded and not at all pleasant places to visit, let alone to live in.
As a born-again follower of Jesus (John 3:1-17), I became somewhat aware of many of the spiritual dynamics associated with the Jewish people, Jerusalem, Islam and the land of Israel, and particularly of the principles of covenant.
What unfolded on Saturday 7th October can never be understood at the physical level as it is a spiritual conflict at the highest level. Unless there is some comprehension of these spiritual dynamics, then it is well-nigh impossible to comprehend the conflict on the ground. Paul, Moses and Jeremiah summarized the matters at hand:
- For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12)
- Then the LORD God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5)
- The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; Who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9)
There is a spiritual conflict of the highest order over the land of Israel. This battle is over the accomplishment of the purposes of Almighty God for worldwide redemption and the attempts by God’s adversary to hinder and thwart the accomplishment of this grand plan. Central to this plan are the dual themes of covenant and the heart of humankind.
Kelvin Crombie is an Australian who lived in Israel for almost twenty-five years and worked for CMJ Israel for many years as a guide, manager, and author. Kelvin has written many books and produced documentaries on the work of the Church's Ministry Among Jewish People, Christ Church Jerusalem, the ANZACs, and Jewish Christians in the Holocaust. Kelvin lives in Perth, Australia, with his Dutch wife Lexie. They have four adult daughters.
