One of the most amazing statements about the Jewish people was made by the wife of one of their greatest enemies.
Haman had a pathological hatred of the Jews. Yet his wife Zeresh declared, “Since Mordecai… is of Jewish origin, you cannot stand against him – you will surely come to ruin” (Esther 6:13). The Jews are virtually indestructible because of God’s ever- lasting covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Genesis 17:1-8).
Jewish history is replete with stories of Jewish survival against incredible odds
Jewish history is replete with stories of Jewish survival against incredible odds. In the 20th century, the Holocaust saw the Nazi war machine wipe out half of world Jewry. Then followed the War of Independence in 1948, the Six Day War in 1967, the Yom Kippur War in 1973, the war of attrition in 1956, two Intifadas plus the almost daily bar- rage of rockets from Gaza and many attacks in Jerusalem.
Today, we are witnessing increasing anti-Semitism and also incredible persecution of Christians. Islam represents the most anti-Jewish and anti-Christian spirit on the earth, and the Islamic saying, “First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people” is being carried out daily. Ironically, while the world was rightly up in arms over the New Zealand mosque atrocity, there was not the slightest mention of the almost 300 Christians massacred by Fulani militants in Nigeria at almost the same time.
As long as Israel survives, Sa- tan is on the back foot, but if he could destroy Israel, God’s reputation would be shot through. The increase in anti-Semitism strongly suggests that Israel is very much alive in the purposes of God. No counterfeiter would ever produce a currency note that had already been with- drawn from circulation. By the same token, Satan would never waste one ounce of his energy on something with which God has finished.
During the 1800s, the Prussian Kaiser asked his chief ad- visor, Otto von Bismarck, if he could prove the existence of God. Bismarck simply replied, “The Jews, sir, the Jews.”
Rev Mervyn Tilley
Romford, Essex
Rev Tilley served on Elim’s national leadership team for nine years. He first visited Israel in 1975 and has now been 101 times. He is chairman of the ministry Focus on Israel.