Yesterday, Pope Leo XIV met Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas at the Vatican. In this first in-person meeting, they clasped hands signifying respect for each other. They discussed the need for a Palestinian state. The Vatican has for many years advocated what the PA calls for—a two-state solution. That is what I advocate in my book Palestine Is Coming: The Revival of Ancient Philistia, published in 1990.
Bible believers, as I am, should advocate for justice regarding the intractable Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And of all people who should do this, the Jews should. There probably has never been a more religious people than Jews, but not so much in recent centuries. They gave the world the Jewish Bible, and the most famous person who has ever lived was a Jew—Jesus of Nazareth.
“Love Your Neighbor as Yourself”
And non-Jews all over the world have believed that this Jewish man Jesus was the promised Messiah of Israel, which means Christ, and they created Christianity the largest religion in the world for the past 16 centuries. And the Jews’ Bible says, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19.18), which Jesus affirmed (Mark 12.31). Since the Jews have had their own nation restored to them for the past 76 years, it is only just that they should love Palestinians as themselves by advocating for a Palestinian state. But instead, Israel has opposed the creation of a Palestinian state.
Christian Zionists do not understand what I’m saying here. In their uncritical support of Israel, they strongly oppose the creation of a Palestinian state. But in doing so, they violate many commands of the Bible that call us to be just in our relationships with other people rather than being partial toward some irregardless of morality and character. For the Bible says, “Partiality in judging is not good” (Proverbs 24.23).
Traditional Two-State Solution is Not Workable
The PA has always insisted that the Palestinian state be located in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, which are two territories separated by about twenty miles that would require a corridor for connection. I assert in my book that this two-state arrangement, which is based pragmatically on demographics, is not very workable, economically and for security purposes, especially for Palestinians, and therefore if tried, it will not succeed.
Bible Predicts Palestinian State in the Coastal Plain
The main title of my book is a prediction that is based on my interpretations of certain prophecies in the Bible, in its Old Testament that Jews call the Tanakh. The subtitle of my book indicates where this predicted Palestinian state will be located. Ancient Philistia was located only in the coastal plain, whereas Samaria and Judea, which is where the West Bank is today, was the very heartland of ancient Israel. Thus, I claim that Bible prophecy indicates that the Palestinian state will be located only in the Mediterranean coastal plain and the Israel will annex all of the West Bank. The main biblical text that does so is Isaiah 11.14. But so does Zechariah 9.5-8 and others. See my book for a thorough explanation of these texts.
The U.S. Should “Recognize the Palestinian State”
I believe that the Vatican’s support of a two-state solution is just and a credit to the Catholic Church, showing as it often does sympathy for the poor, the downtrodden, the disenfranchised people, which is what the Palestinian people are. And it is a shame for the United States of America to continue to not advocate a Palestinian state. The Trump administration has been the worst about this. For example, it refused to attend the UN General Assembly meeting last month when major western nations, who are allies of the UN, such as the UK, Canada, and Australia, attended this meeting for the purpose of joining 147 other nations, that had done so years earlier, in “recognizing the Palestinian state.”
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