Addressing Controversy: Should Christians Support Israel?

We live in an age of quick quotes and short videos, but these rarely dig deeply enough into a subject for us to know whether the opinion expressed is biblical or not. My goal is to examine this question through Scripture to discover how God would want us to respond to Israel.

I know many will not read this entire article, but any attempt to cover this subject in a diminished way will be insufficient for those who truly want to know biblical truth more than opinions.

God Is Nuanced, Not Simplistic

Like most issues of this nature, there are nuances. We must remember that our God, though never changing, is nuanced. He is a person, not a list of rules. As a person, He interacts with His creation in a relational way. His love is perfect in wisdom.

He responds in love, but in His wisdom, He knows what a person needs to move them nearer to salvation and holiness. Like a wise father who knows how to discipline, encourage, and motivate his children differently according to their heart, mind, and personality, God’s love responds perfectly and appropriately to each person according to His desire to love them fully and be loved by them fully.

A Brief Biblical Foundation of Israel

Before Israel existed, God chose to establish a covenant with a man named Abram. Over time, to mark this covenant, God changed his name to Abraham, meaning “father of many.” The initial covenant is found in Genesis 12:1–3.

Genesis 12:1-3

The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

² “I will make you into a great nation,

and I will bless you;

I will make your name great,

and you will be a blessing.

³ I will bless those who bless you,

and whoever curses you I will curse;

and all peoples on earth

will be blessed through you. ” (NIV)

God’s covenant with Abraham became His covenant with the nation of Israel. The covenant passed from Abraham to his son Isaac, then to Isaac’s son Jacob. Jacob’s sons and their descendants became the twelve tribes of Israel.

When Joseph, one of Jacob’s sons, was given authority in Egypt during a time of famine, he arranged for his family to move there so he could care for them. God had given Joseph wisdom to endure the famine. Over time, this family grew into a people numbering in the millions. When a later Pharaoh became fearful of their numbers, he enslaved them. They remained enslaved for approximately 400 years until Moses was sent by God to deliver them.

The Covenant of the Land

Long before this family became millions, God extended His covenant with Abraham, including a promise of land (Genesis 15:18–21).

Genesis 15:18-21

¹⁸ On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates — ¹⁹ the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, ²⁰ Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, ²¹ Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” (NIV)

When we look at the area described in this covenant, we see that it corresponds to the region where modern-day Israel exists today. However, neither ancient Israel nor modern Israel ever expanded to occupy all the land described in this covenant.

The land promised to Israel was inhabited by other people groups. God gave Israel the land, but He required them to go in and take possession of it. At times, treaties were attempted. At other times, there was war. It was a violent period, but Scripture explains that God allowed these nations to be defeated because their societies had become exceedingly sinful. Israel’s conquest functioned as God’s judgment against them.

God’s Justice Applies to Israel as Well

God does not deal with Israel differently in principle. Just as God allowed other nations to be judged because of their sin, He warned Israel that the same would happen to them if their sin increased.

Leviticus 26 outlines this clearly. If Israel honored God, He promised blessing. If they did not, He promised economic collapse, military defeat, disease and famine, social breakdown, and eventually the loss of the land.

This brings us to a crucial point.

The False Binary: Blind Support or Total Rejection

The question of whether Christians should support Israel is often framed in a binary way. However, God never blindly supported Israel when their behavior was sinful. God never asks His people to support a person, institution, or government blindly when it acts in disobedience to His Word.

At the same time, God is merciful. The nations judged before Israel existed in their sin for centuries before being destroyed. Some of those nations still exist today despite openly worshiping other gods. God was merciful with Israel as well.

Israel sinned, and God brought about all the consequences He promised—so much so that ten of the twelve tribes were assimilated into other cultures and are often referred to as “the lost tribes of Israel.” Yet even while remaining faithful to His warnings of judgment, God never abandoned Israel. His mercy remained.

Prophecy of Loss Before It Happened

Part of the original covenant stated that God would bless those who blessed Israel and curse those who cursed it. Even so, prophecy clearly foretold that Israel would lose its land.

Moses and many Old Testament prophets warned of this long before it happened. Jesus Himself predicted it (Luke 21:20–24).

Luke 21:20-24

²⁰ “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. ²¹ Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. ²² For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. ²³ How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. ²⁴ They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (NIV)

Shortly after Christ’s ascension, these events occurred. The Roman Empire destroyed Jerusalem and the temple in AD 70, an event well documented historically. Jewish national control of the land ended.

The final book of the Bible was not written until approximately AD 90, a date on which most scholars agree.

Roman Punishment and Jewish Revolts

Christians were severely persecuted in the Roman Empire because of their faith. Jews, however, were punished primarily because of rebellion against Rome.

These rebellions were not led by Christians, but by Jewish nationalists—many of whom rejected Christ. The first revolt occurred just before AD 70 and resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple.

The second major revolt occurred in AD 132, led by Simon bar Kokhba, whom many believed to be the Messiah. Jewish Christians refused to participate because they knew he was not the Messiah. Rome responded by exiling the Jews further and renaming the land Palestine.

Prophecy of Restoration

Alongside prophecies of loss, Scripture also contains prophecies that God would restore Israel to the land.

Deuteronomy 30:1–5 describes what would happen after Israel lost the land and was scattered.

Deuteronomy 30:1-5

​¹ When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come on you and you take them to heart wherever the LORD your God disperses you among the nations, ² and when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, ³ then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you. ⁴ Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you and bring you back. ⁵ He will bring you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors. (NIV)

Importantly, this prophecy was given before Israel ever possessed the land. God laid out their future history: they would enter the land, lose it because of sin, and later be restored.

Israel lost the land completely by AD 135. The land was not restored until AD 1948.

The Modern Restoration of Israel

In 1948, the United Nations passed Resolution 181, proposing a two-state solution—one Jewish and one Arab. Israel accepted the resolution; Arab leadership rejected it.

Israel declared itself a nation and was immediately attacked the next day by Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq. After roughly ten months of fighting, these nations surrendered. Israel regained possession of the land, just as foretold thousands of years earlier in Deuteronomy.

This brings us to another important point.

Modern Israel is the Same Israel of the Old Testament

Many argue Christians are not obligated to support Israel because modern Israel is not the same nation spoken of in the Old Testament. However, Scripture foretells Israel’s entire future history, including a return to the land after exile.

Because of this, it is difficult to argue from Scripture that God’s covenant no longer applies to modern Israel.

Israel in Revelation

In Revelation, written around AD 90, John records a vision of the end of the world and the establishment of a new heaven and a new earth. This vision includes all peoples of the world, but also the twelve tribes of Israel.

Though history has lost track of ten of the tribes, God apparently has not. The new earth is called the New Jerusalem. Some interpret this symbolically, and I do not argue that point. Even so, the imagery reflects God’s continued view of Israel as one people, without distinction between ancient and modern Israel.

Support, Accountability, and Mercy

Returning to the original question: Christians should never blindly support individuals or nations that act immorally. At the same time, Christians are called to extend mercy.

Institutions are made up of people. Refusing mercy to institutions ultimately results in refusing mercy to people. Mercy, however, does not eliminate accountability. If mercy is rejected through persistent wickedness, accountability must follow.

Institutions: A Necessary Distinction

Consider the Christian Church. Its mission, established by Christ, is to make disciples through love. Yet many Christians fail to live this out. This failure reflects individuals within the institution, not the institution’s purpose itself.

By contrast, consider the KKK. Its founding purpose was to maintain white supremacy and resist Reconstruction. Though its language has changed over time, its mission has remained wicked. In such cases, the institution itself must be opposed and dismantled.

Israel is not such an institution. Neither is the government of the United States. Their stated purposes are not wicked. Yet wicked people can exist within any government. Christians should call out wrongdoing while still supporting institutions whose foundational purpose is not evil.

The Call to Prayer for Israel

Scripture calls believers to be watchmen—to pray persistently for Jerusalem (Isaiah 62:6–7). This prayer continues until Israel becomes the praise of the earth, something that has never yet occurred.

Isaiah 62:6-7

⁶ I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem;

they will never be silent day or night.

You who call on the LORD,

give yourselves no rest,

⁷ and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem

and makes her the praise of the earth. (NIV)

Paul affirms in Romans 11 that God has not rejected Israel. Christians are commanded to pray for all people, including those who persecute them.

Conclusion: Should Christians Support Israel?

In my understanding of Scripture, Christians are called to support Israel as a nation and to pray for Israel—specifically for Israel to return to God, and call out any wicked behavior at the same time. Support means support, but it does not mean supporting wicked behavior. It seems clear that the covenant with Abraham still applies to modern Israel. We can expect God to honor His word that those who bless Israel will be blessed and those who curse her will also be cursed. Our support of Israel, however, should follow God's nuanced way of blessing and support with accountability.

A Final Question: Should the U.S. Government Support Israel?

Governments, like all institutions, are made up of people. Christians in government are called to support Israel while holding it accountable. Supporting Israel does not require supporting every policy decision. And supporting policy decisions that do support Israel is not sinful either.

Refusing to send money or weapons does not necessarily mean rejecting Israel. At the same time, ignoring or excusing immoral actions goes against God's command to expose wickedness.

Some argue no support should be given unless Israel acts perfectly. If this standard were applied consistently, no person, institution, or nation could ever be supported—including ourselves. No one and thus, no institution or government, is without sin.

Final Thought

This is a complex issue. Scripture calls Christians to support Israel in a nuanced, accountable, prayerful way—with truth, mercy, and faithfulness to God above all.