(JNS) American Jews are often too skeptical or even rejecting of support from pro-Israel Christians. Many assume, for example, that Christian Zionists support Israel simply because they want to hasten the apocalypse and the second coming of Jesus Christ. But truthfully, Christian Zionists support Israel for moral reasons—because the Jewish state espouses the same biblical values held by both Americans and Israelis.

Since American Christians compose the single largest support group in the United States for Israel, this skepticism is largely misplaced and actually dangerous for Israel. Indeed, in sheer population size—about 160 million—Christians in the America outnumber Jews by a factor of 20-to-1. Depending solely on America’s estimated 7.5 million Jews to support Israel doesn’t make sense when some 78 million American Christians currently support the Jewish state just as adamantly, if not more so.

Indeed, Christian support is sometimes even stronger and more unconditional than that of American Jews. For one thing, Christian Zionists tend to have fewer qualms about Israel’s government under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu than Jews do.

However, Christian favor may be eroding. In fact, data shows waning support for the Jewish state among both Jews and evangelical Christians, particularly among the younger crowd.

American and Israeli Jewish Zionists would be well served to direct greater efforts toward recruiting and nurturing Christian support in the United States. It’s logical, given that Christian Zionists’ sheer numbers translate into millions more votes come election time, which have been known to sway elections in favor of candidates who support Israel.

American Jews wrongly view Christian Zionists with skepticism. Some Jews, for example, adhere to a longstanding myth that Christians who support Israel do so because they eagerly await the apocalypse, including Israel’s destruction, required for the Messiah’s return. This myth is often parroted by the media. Indeed, in an article on Christian support for Israel’s actions in Gaza, two New York Times reporters found it “impossible to disentangle” pro-Israel attitudes from “apocalyptic predictions” that interpret current events as “the culminations of prophecies recorded in the Bible.”

But in truth, most Christian Zionists support Israel because of a more fundamental biblical principle: Those who bless Israel will be blessed. This principle appears in Genesis 12:3, when God said to Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse.” By this, Christian Zionists believe they are commanded to support Israel.

Furthermore, Israel shares the same biblical, Judeo-Christian values that Americans, including Christian Zionists, espouse: the sacredness of life, rule of law and a moral system. Christian Zionists also rightfully believe that a strong Israel helps guarantee an “America First” security structure in the Middle East and internationally.

Evangelical Christians form the largest pro-Israel group in the United States. WhileJews comprise just 2.4% of US adults, evangelicals make up 23% of America’s adult population. The largest pro-Israel Christian lobbying group, Christians United for Israel (CUFI), boasts more than 10 million members—twice the membership of AIPAC, the largest Jewish pro-Israel lobbying group in the United States. Evangelicals also account for the bulk of Republican pro-Israel sentiment. Without them, GOP views on Israel align more closely with the national average.

Christian Zionist support for Israel is often stronger than Jewish support. A 2025 Pew study indicated that 53% of Americans have a “somewhat or very unfavorable” opinion of Israel. In contrast, 72% of white evangelical Protestants have a favorable view of Israel, which roughly coincides with the percentage of American Jews who view the Jewish state positively.

However, just 54% of American Jews view the Israeli government under Netanyahu positively, while 71% of evangelicals have a favorable view of it. Furthermore, whereas just 32% of Jews believe that God gave Israel to the Jewish people, more than twice as many white evangelical Protestants (70%) believe the same. In short, Christian Zionist support for Israel is much more unconditional than Jewish support, as the former care less about who is in power and are more religiously attached to the Jewish state.

Support for Israel among America’s Christians—and Jews—is waning. This is particularly true of younger evangelicals. For example, a 2021 survey of evangelical Christians aged 18 to 29 asked who they sided with in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Just 33.6% said they sided with Israel, while 24.3% sided with the Palestinians. This is in sharp contrast to a similar survey done in 2018, when 69% of young evangelicals sided with Israel, and just 5.6% sided with the Palestinians. Research attributes this to several factors, including some young evangelicals’ dislike of US President Donald Trump; the rise of progressive organizations, such as the Telos Group; the rise of social media; and the indication that young evangelicals have less knowledge of the Israel-Palestinian conflict or are less interested.

Unfortunately, this trend coincides with a decline in support for Israel among young Jews. For instance, whereas 62% of all American Jews said Israel’s response to the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, was “acceptable” in 2024, this number dropped to 52% for Jews aged 18 to 34. This indicates that maintaining and expanding Christian—and Jewish—support for Israel is more urgent than ever.

Recruiting and nurturing Christian support in the US for Israel is crucial. Indeed, at nearly a quarter of the American voting public, evangelicals have much more power to elect pro-Israel legislators than the tiny 2.4% percent of Jewish voters. For example, post‑election analyses and media accounts widely note that “the Christian vote” (especially evangelical) was decisive in many swing states, as well as pivotal for Trump’s 2024 victory and a dramatic upswing in US support for Israel.

Now, as Israel is being attacked with lies and vitriol more than ever, it is incumbent on supporters of Israel to build alliances with the 78 million evangelical Americans, among whom are the most adamant supporters of the Jewish state. As Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar recently said, “Our Christian friends are our most important and true friends.”

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