There is a time-honored confidence trick known as the shell game or coconut shell game, often played for money. A ball or an object is hidden underneath one of three coconut shells as they are quickly shuffled back and forth on a flat surface. The player attempts to point out the shell which covers the hidden object. In most cases the hapless victim and his money are soon parted, since he was unable to keep track of the coconut shells.
In a similar manner, the fast-paced events of the past week in the Middle East could easily confuse any bystander. What lies underneath each coconut shell on the diplomatic table: Is it peace? Is it war? A new Golden Age for the Middle East? Or is it something similar to the apocalyptic Munich Agreement of September 1938? A lot depends on uncovering the secrets of men’s hearts (see Psalm 44:21; Daniel 2:29; 1 Corinthians 14:25). We need God to shine His divine spotlight on what is motivating the leaders of Syria and Qatar, of Saudi Arabia and the USA.
- Coming newsletters will focus on unpacking these events.
The ideal leader
The ideal leader in God’s sight (according to the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 17:14-20) is a man who weighs matters, makes and implements his decisions based on the Scriptures. His heart must not be influenced by pursuit of power or wealth. Based on these guidelines, sad to say, there are precious few godly leaders in our world today.
Being a world leader does not guarantee wisdom or godly policies, for “foolishness is set in many exalted places” (Ecclesiastes 10:6). Political strategies fashioned by godless leaders can sometimes bring destructive results: “YHVH knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are useless” (1 Corinthians 3:19-20). But when Biblical foundations are present, godly geopolitics can bring blessing and not futility.
Solomon son of David was the wisest man who ever lived: “Now God gave Solomon wisdom and very great discernment and breadth of mind, like the sand that is on the seashore. Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt” (1 Kings 4:29-30). Yet Solomon ended up disqualifying himself from the throne by his chasing after ‘girls, gold and glory.’ Toward the end of his life, David’s son summed up what he had learned: “The conclusion, when everything has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).
God’s scalpel cuts deep into the torso of humankind, exposing fat, muscle and bone: “For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). The rollercoaster of Middle East events is being crafted by YHVH to expose the thoughts and hearts of many peoples and leaders.
The elephant in the living room
The Western world is for the most part ignorant of what the Arabic-speaking world thinks, what the Islamic community believes, and what Muslim sensitivities are. The secularized West is mostly unaware of what the Quran teaches, and of how the concept of military jihad is central in the Muslim world. For those who would want to broaden their understanding on these matters, a good place to begin is David Pryce-Jones’ penetrating book ‘The Closed Circle: An Interpretation of the Arabs’ (1989, Harper & Row).
Lt. Col. (res.) Dr. Mordechai Kedar, senior research associate at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, served for 25 years in IDF military intelligence specializing in Syria, Arab political discourse and mass media, Islamic groups and Israeli Arabs. An expert on the Muslim Brotherhood, his take is worth considering: “Given Islam’s pervasive entrenchment in Palestinian society (and for that matter in all Middle Eastern societies) – even Yasser Arafat and most of the PLO’s founding generation were Muslim Brotherhood members in their young age – the acceptance of Israel’s existence by Muslims communities, both within Israel and abroad, will only be feasible upon their realization of the Jewish state’s overwhelming strength and invincibility. Only a powerful, well organized, highly determined and militarily invincible Israel can stand a chance of surviving in its violent and merciless neighborhood.”
This can be described as ‘the strong horse’ principle. In mid-November 2001, Osama Bin Laden spoke to a room of supporters, discussing the September 11th terrorist attacks: “When people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature, they will like the strong horse. This is [the] goal . . . following the doctrine of Muhammad.” Bin Laden saw Islam as the strong horse, and Christian America and the Jewish state as the weak horses.
Journalist Lee Smith based the name of his book The Strong Horse: Power, Politics, and the Clash of Arab Civilizations on Osama bin Laden’s quote. Smith states that strength or “violence is central to the politics, society, and culture of the Arabic-speaking Middle East, and that Arab politics is driven by the ‘strong horse’ principle.” “Bin Ladenism is not drawn from the extremist fringe but represents the political and social norm [of the Arabic-speaking Middle East].” According to T. Edward Donselm (writing in the Arab Studies Quarterly), Smith sees revived modern Islamism using the fourteen-hundred-year old tool of jihad to restore Sunni Islam once again to world supremacy.
Dr. Daniel Pipes (director of the Middle East Forum and Taube distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University) applies Bin Laden’s ‘strong horse’ principle to Israel’s role in the Middle East. Israel serves as ‘a proxy strong horse’ for both the United States and the Saudi-Egyptian bloc in the latter’s Cold War rivalry with Iran’s bloc. Pipes explains that non-Arab actors in the Arab world must demonstrate force and staying power – otherwise they lose. “Being nice – say, withdrawing unilaterally from southern Lebanon and Gaza – leads to inevitable failure. More broadly, when the U.S. government flinches, others (e.g., the Iranian leadership) have an opportunity to ‘force their own order on the region.’ Walid Jumblatt, a Lebanese Druze leader, has half-seriously suggested that Washington [should] ‘send car bombs to Damascus’ to get its message across and signal its understanding of Arab ways.”
Pipes concludes that the ‘strong horse’ paradigm helps us to comprehend the Arabs’ cult of death, honor killings, terrorist attacks, despotism and warfare. Pipes acknowledges that the strong-horse principle may strike Westerners as crude, but it is nevertheless a cold reality that outsiders must recognize, take into account, and respond to. An awareness of how life is lived and war is waged ‘in the hood’ known as the Middle East, is essential for Israel’s survival.
- There is an old Persian/Iranian proverb which warns: “Do not invite an elephant trainer into your living room unless you also have room there for an elephant!” Islam’s view of Israel and the Jewish people is the ticking time-bomb which lies at the heart of the Middle East. It cannot be brushed under the carpet, in the same way as an elephant in one’s living room can’t be ignored. Both the West and the Islamic world must tune in to the reality that, from the perspective of the God of Jacob, anti-Jewish attitudes and actions are going to have divine ramifications in the Day of God’s judgment.
How to get the spots off the leopard
Hatred and rejection of the Jewish people are deeply imbedded in the Islamic scriptures – both the Quran and the hadith (Islamic authoritative commentaries). Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Qatar, Iraq, Iran and Turkey all flow with that anti-Semitic stream, following centuries-old traditions calling for the crushing and elimination of Israel. These perspectives and prejudices are deal-breakers when it comes to establishing peace between Islamist nations and the Jewish state. Poisonous roots must be eradicated. Ancient hatreds must be recognized, repented of and rejected. All of the spots must be removed from the anti-Semitic leopard.
A simple declaration that there is now going to be ‘a new partner to the Abraham Accords’ will not in itself ultimately achieve something. And by the way: neither Syria, the United Arab Emirates or Morocco are descendants of Abraham – based on both the Bible, their own history and traditions. Their ancient roots are respectively from Aram (Genesis 10:22), Shem (Genesis 10:26-29), and Hamitic Berber (Genesis 10:6-14). See my book ‘Jews, Arabs and the Middle East: a Messianic perspective’ for a more in-depth look.
At a June 2009 meeting between POTUS Obama and Saudi King Abdullah, the King referred to “the historic and strategic ties between our two countries . . . that go back to the time of the meeting between the late [President] Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the late [Saudi] King Abdul-Aziz.” Abdullah was referring to that historic February 14 1945 meeting on the deck of the USS Quincy as it lay anchored on Egypt’s Great Bitter Lake at the close of WWII. There the Saudi King asked and received a promise from Roosevelt that the USA would “do nothing to assist the Jews against the Arabs and would make no move hostile to the Arab people.” These assurances were confirmed in a letter dated April 5 1945 and signed by Roosevelt, acting in his capacity as the Chief of the Executive Branch of the US government. Of paramount importance to King Abdullah was that America would not assist or defend the Jewish people in the coming clashes with the Islamic mujahidin (jihadi armies).
Islamist terror groups – be they PLO, Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards, Iraq’s Kata’eb Hezbollah, or Syria’s HTS (‘Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham,’‘Organization for the Liberation of the Levant’; abbreviated HTS).) – all are committed to the total destruction of the Jewish state and the Israeli people. They base these goals on orthodox Islamist principles, backed up by extensive quotes from the Quran and the Hadith. Not only terror groups but also Islamist states (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Syria and the regions of Gaza, Houthi Yemen, and West Bank areas under Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah control) are also committed to the same anti-Jewish goals and strategies.
A new ‘Golden Age for the Middle East’ will not happen apart from the Islamic world undergoing deep repentance (as described in Isaiah 19:16-22 as Egypt’s future lot). A glut of Islamist gold invested into US military and computer/AI industries will also not achieve spiritual or physical restoration for the Arab world. Sadly, the curse of the God of Jacob rests on the Islamic world, based on Genesis 12:3. The principle is straight out of the Abrahamic Covenant: “I will bless those who bless you. And him who dishonors you I will curse!” (Genesis 12:3 ESV).
- The Arabic-speaking world needs a spiritual heart-transplant –where it receives the God of Israel’s heart and passions for His Jewish people. Apart from that, no super-power deal can be pushed through which will bring God’s pleasure and achieve His peace. “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Then you as well can do good who are accustomed to doing evil” (Jeremiah 13:23).
How shall we then pray?
Here are three major snares facing the international community. It is worth praying for your country and neighborhood about these issues:
- foundational ignorance of how God views the world according to biblical realities
- lack of awareness of God’s irrevocable calling on and gifts to the Jewish people
- flat-out hatred of the Jewish people
As well, we encourage you to pray with us:
- Pray for revelation and courage to be given to Israel’s leaders in political, intelligence and military spheres – to understand and counteract strategies against Israel, the apple of God’s eye (Zechariah 2:8) – as jihadi armies gather at our borders.
- Pray that enemy strategies against the Jewish people and their state, against Middle East Christians and other minorities – will be confounded, and that a great harvest would take place in all of these areas!
- Pray for the protection of Israeli and Jewish people from the assaults of jihadi terror organizations and Western fellow-travelers, and the return of the Jewish people to both the Land and the Messiah of Israel
- There are approximately 20 living Israeli hostages remaining, kidnapped by Hamas, Islamic Jihad, PFLP/PLO and the Mujahideen Brigades. Hamas is also holding on to approximately 70 Israeli corpses as cold storage bargaining chips. Pray for the speedy release of all the hostages, and for YHVH’s justice to be brought on the heads of the Islamist kidnappers
- Pray for the raising up of Ezekiel’s prophetic Jewish army throughout the earth
Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the very practical enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do.
In Messiah Yeshua,
Avner Boskey
Donations can be sent to:
FINAL FRONTIER MINISTRIES
BOX 121971 NASHVILLE TN 37212-1971 USA
Donations can also be made on-line (by PayPal or credit card) through: https://www.davidstent.org/
