These are usually not classic opponents of Israel. They are not activists of the BDS movement, not representatives of a secular anti-Zionism, and often not people who are hostile toward the Jewish people. On the contrary. Many of them have loved Israel, prayed for Israel, visited Israel, defended Israel, and felt connected to the Jewish people for decades. Precisely for this reason, their criticism deserves attention. A few days ago, I received a letter from a former reader and long-time customer of Israel Heute. His words are representative of a development we have increasingly observed in recent years.
He wrote: “Yes, the reason for my cancellation has to do with my differentiated perspective, which I do not find at Israel Heute. That is to say, I consider it wrong to equate the State of Israel and Judaism one-to-one with biblical Israel, the descendants of Jacob; however, that is exactly how it consistently comes across at Israel Heute. Certainly, I do see some overlap, but it is my personal conviction that in the State of Israel and in Judaism there is clearly more of Esau (and others) than of Jacob. Even in Jesus’ time there was already a clear mixing. Personally, I have nothing at all against the people (except those who follow the luciferian teaching of the Kabbalah and the Babylonian Talmud). The point is that the Old Testament promises apply to Jacob and his descendants. Therefore, I wish Israel Heute reporting with a more differentiated perspective.”
Many Christians today make a stronger distinction between the modern State of Israel and biblical Israel. They ask whether every political decision made in Jerusalem can automatically be equated with God’s promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They see in Israel not only the fulfillment of biblical prophecy, but also a modern state with all the strengths, weaknesses, mistakes, and moral challenges that every state possesses.
In addition, some Christians have gained the impression that Israel is not viewed critically enough in parts of the Christian media landscape. They ask why corruption, political power struggles, social tensions, religious conflicts, or moral failings are often addressed more cautiously than the same problems in other countries. For them, this creates a tension between their love for Israel and their understanding of the biblical message. Beyond that, in conversations with Christians abroad, I have repeatedly heard that they are slowly losing patience with Israel.
This process has intensified especially since October 7, 2023. Many Christians initially stood unequivocally at Israel’s side. But the longer the war lasted, the more images of suffering and destruction from the Gaza Strip circulated around the world, and the harsher the political language became on all sides, the more some began to ask difficult questions. Not because they suddenly support Hamas or would question Israel’s right to exist. Rather, they are trying to reconcile their solidarity with Israel with their Christian understanding of justice, mercy, and moral responsibility.
There is also a theological aspect. Some Christians are convinced that the biblical promises still apply, but that they do not automatically justify every action of the modern State of Israel. Others go even further and clearly distinguish between the biblical people of Israel and the present-day State of Israel. This gives rise to tensions that are increasingly reflected in Christian congregations, organizations, and media.
Perhaps, however, there is an even deeper misunderstanding hidden here.
Many Christians in the West read the Bible primarily through the lens of divine miracles. The Red Sea parts. Manna falls from heaven. Walls collapse. Angels intervene. God speaks directly to prophets and kings. This can easily create the impression that the history of Israel was above all a story of spectacular miracles, while politics, diplomacy, power interests, and human action played only a subordinate role.
But the Bible itself tells a far more complex story. Yes, God acts. But He usually acts in the midst of the political, economic, and social developments of His time. The return from the Babylonian exile did not happen through a magical moment. It became possible because power relations in the Middle East changed, because the Persian Empire defeated Babylon, and because King Cyrus pursued a new policy. Ezra and Nehemiah did not return to Jerusalem as heavenly figures. They acted as political actors within a concrete world order.
The same applies to the founding of the State of Israel in 1948. For believing Jews and Christians, it can indeed be understood as the fulfillment of biblical promises. But this promise was not fulfilled detached from history. It was realized through diplomacy, waves of immigration, international resolutions, political lobbying, the collapse of empires, the Holocaust, and the willingness to sacrifice of people of flesh and blood. Families such as the Rothschilds supported the establishment of Jewish settlements. Zionist leaders negotiated with governments. Diplomats fought for international recognition. Soldiers defended the emerging homeland with weapons in their hands.
Israel’s existence is not only a biblical miracle; it is at the same time an extraordinary political and historical fact. Where else in world history do we find an example of a people returning to its historical homeland after nearly 2,000 years of dispersion, reestablishing a sovereign state there, and even reviving its ancient language as a living everyday language? It is precisely this unique combination of biblical promise, national identity, political action, and historical reality that makes Israel’s story exceptional.
Believe me: in 500 years, people will likely look back on the rebirth of Israel the way we today look at the great stories of the Bible. Many details of the political processes, diplomatic negotiations, international interests, and human decisions will long have been forgotten. What will remain are the broad lines of history: a people was gathered from all corners of the earth, returned to its ancient homeland after almost 2,000 years, founded a state there again, and brought its ancient language back to life. Then much will appear sacred, wondrous, and almost supernatural.
Perhaps some Christians unconsciously expect a kind of “holy hocus-pocus” that makes the biblical promises visibly manifest. But the Bible often shows the opposite. God writes history not outside of politics, but right in the midst of it. He works not only through miracles, but also through kings, diplomats, wars, economic developments, and human decisions.
Those who forget this often measure present-day Israel against an idealized image of biblical Israel that never existed in this form. The Israel of the times of David, Solomon, Hezekiah, Ezra, or Nehemiah was also not free of political conflicts, power struggles, corruption, wars, and moral failure. The Bible does not conceal this reality. On the contrary. It reports it openly and unsparingly.
Perhaps the real challenge, therefore, is to hold on to two truths at the same time. Israel is a modern state with all the flaws, tensions, and contradictions of human history. And at the same time, millions of believing Jews and Christians see in its existence a part of a larger story that is not yet finished.
The decisive question, therefore, may not be whether one should idealize or criticize Israel. The real question is whether one is willing to view Israel within the same tension in which the Bible itself describes the people of Israel—as a people called by God, yet consisting of fallible human beings. It is precisely this tension that runs through the entire Bible. If we draw comparisons, it is because this tension may explain more about present-day Israel than some on both sides of the debate would like to admit.
