Jerusalem Should Be First on the Peace Agenda

Why not make Jerusalem the first issue to be dealt with, and not the last?

And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.  (Zechariah 12:3)

First Palestinian Arab study groups, backed by their political and religious leaders, declared that there was no evidence that a Jewish Temple ever stood on the Temple Mount. Now, in a just-published study, the Palestinian Authority is insisting that the Western Wall, too, has no historical connection to the Jewish people.

With these outrageous lies, the Palestinian leadership is preparing to stake its claim to "East Jerusalem:" International pressure must be brought to bear on Israel to hand over these parts of the city, which "have no connection to the Jewish people," so they can be made into the exclusive capital of their Palestinian state.

As this Arab demand and condition for any peace agreement with Israel is a non-negotiable, Israel would be wise and do well to make Jerusalem the first item for discussion and not the last. Indeed, if it becomes clear there is no give and take on "East" Jerusalem, as certainly will become clear, then this city, as the Bible has already remarkably foretold, will become a stone too heavy for all the nations of the world to lift. After years of praying diligently to return to that place where their God made His dwelling between the cherubim in the Holy of Holies, the vast majority of Jews will refuse a peace that will see that place excluded from their territory.

For who can fathom a situation arising where indeed, for peace sake, a majority of Israelis will be willing to forfeit their ancient city and Temple Mount? Certainly the Muslim Palestinians will never, not even for peace sake, be willing to lay aside their claim - and this not withstanding the fact that Jerusalem is not mentioned even one single time in their Quran!!

Even if - God forbid - the unthinkable would happen, that Israel's will would crumble under the incessant demands of the Arabs, and the Jews would withdraw not only from all of the "territories" but also from the eastern side of their ancient capital - even this would not bring peace. Instead it would be readily used by the now radicalized Muslim world as a stepping-stone to further dismantle Israel.

Let us not forget that the PLO was formed in 1964 - three years before the outbreak of the Six Day War - not to liberate the then already Arab-controlled 'West Bank' but to "liberate" all of Israel!

Well, was it said, therefore, by the eminent military historian Dr. Uri Milstein, as quoted in Arutz Sheva on November 5, 2010:

The problem, Milstein says, is the left. "In the leftist bastions of Ramat Aviv and Kfar Shmaryahu, they are still convinced that peace will come if we give up Judea and Samaria and the Golan. They probably won't change their minds even if missiles rain down on Tel Aviv. The only way they will change their mind is if we do surrender these areas, and they find that the Arabs still make war against us."

Jan Willem van der Hoeven, Director

International Christian Zionist Cente

Baruch atem b'Shem, Yeshua

Jerusalem Arabs Prefer Israeli Sovereignty

by Chana Ya'ar

Jerusalem’s Arab population prefers Israeli sovereignty to the prospect of living under Palestinian Authority rule, according to a column written by popular Arab writer Khaled Abu Toameh.

In a hard-hitting piece published last week in Hudson New York, he contends that any talk of dividing Jerusalem, a “very small city where Jews and Arabs live across the street from each other and on top of each other,” is “completely unrealistic.”

Abu Toameh, a Muslim Arab journalist for nearly three decades, says the PA’s insistence on taking half of Jerusalem for the capital of the new country it wants to create, would turn the city into “a nightmare” of traffic snarls surrounded by security barriers, checkpoints and border crossings.

And just as no one asked the PA Arabs in Judea, Samaria and Gaza for their opinion before the Oslo Accords were signed in 1993, it appears that once again, Arab residents’ feelings are being ignored.

But Abu Toameh contends it is only fair to ask the 200,000 Arab residents of Jerusalem whether they actually want to live in a divided city “under the rule of the Palestinian Authority or Hamas.” A majority would likely prefer the status quo to other options, he says, for a number of reasons.

“First, because as holders of Israeli ID cards, they are entitled to many rights and privileges that Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip don’t enjoy. They include freedom of movement and social, economic, health and education services that Israeli citizens are entitled to.”

Abu Toameh adds that re-dividing Jerusalem would mean the entry of the PA, or of Hamas, into the city. “The Arab residents of Jerusalem have seen what happened in the West Bank and Gaza Strip over the past 16 years and are not keen to live under a corrupt authority or a radical Islamist entity,” he says pointedly.

Many, he says, ran away from Judea and Samaria because they did not want to live in areas controlled by “militiamen, armed gangs and corrupt leaders and institutions.”

Those who believe that Jerusalem can realistically be split are “living in an illusion and clearly do not know what they are talking about,” Abu Toameh says.

Instead of talking about tearing the city apart, he suggests, “it would be better if the negotiators started thinking of ways that enable Jews and Arabs to share, and not divide, the city.” 
Baruch atem b'Shem, Yeshua

Middle East peace talks: Where they stand

As the Obama administration relaunches direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the BBC's Paul Reynolds outlines where the three parties stand on the core issues of the conflict.

JERUSALEM

Israel
The Israeli government is unwilling to divide Jerusalem, held to be the political and religious centre of the Jewish people. It stands by the 1980 basic Israeli law that "Jerusalem, complete and united, is the capital of Israel". In the past there has been room for manoeuvre on the margins. In talks in 2000 and 2007, the then Israeli governments proposed exchanging some outlying annexed districts.

Palestinians
The Palestinians want East Jerusalem, which was controlled by Jordan before being captured by the Israelis in 1967, as the capital of a Palestinian state. The Old City contains the third holiest place in Islam, the al-Aqsa mosque, and the Dome of the Rock, from where Mohammed is said to have visited heaven on his winged steed Burak.

United States
The US does not recognise the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem and maintains its embassy in Tel Aviv. President Barack Obama has opposed the building of housing for Israelis in East Jerusalem though he said before becoming president that dividing the city would be "very difficult to execute".

BOARDERS

Israel
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepts that there should be a Palestinian state and that there will have to be an Israeli withdrawal from parts at least of the West Bank (captured by Israel in 1967) to accommodate this. Israel has already withdrawn from Gaza. Israel would like the borders to include Jerusalem and the major Israeli settlements that have grown up on the West Bank.

Palestinians
They want the talks to start from the basic position that all the land occupied by Israel in 1967 belongs to a future Palestine. Any land given to the Israelis would have to be compensated for by a balanced land swap.

United States
The US agrees that the starting point but not the end point should be the 1967 lines and that a land swap will have to be the basis of any agreement. It will encourage this.

SETTLEMENTS

Israel
The Israeli government insists on keeping the major Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Any departure from this would break up the coalition which forms the government. An immediate problem is that an Israeli moratorium on West Bank settlements is due to run out on 26 September.

Palestinians
Ideally, the Palestinians would like all settlements to be abandoned as they were in Gaza. However, they appear to accept that some will have to stay but they will argue for a minimum number and a land swap for any that are left. They threaten to leave the talks if the Israeli moratorium is ended on 26 September.

United States
As with the annexation of East Jerusalem, the US has not recognised the international legitimacy of the Israeli West Bank settlements. But it accepts their reality and will press for compromise. It is also trying to reach a compromise on the moratorium problem.

REFUGEES

Israel
Israel rejects the idea that Palestinian refugees from previous wars should be allowed any "right of return" to their former homes. They say that this is a device to destroy the state of Israel by demography in order to re-establish a unitary state of Palestine. For that reason Mr Netanyahu has called for Israel to be recognised as a Jewish state.

Palestinians
Formally, they maintain the "right of return", arguing that without it a great injustice would not be put right. However, there has been regular talk among Palestinians that this "right" could be met by compensation. They refuse to recognise the concept of Israel as a "Jewish state", saying that this is unnecessary and that it ignores the Israeli-Arab citizens of Israel.

United States
The US understands the Israeli refusal to take back refugees and hopes that this can be resolved by compensation and development aid for this whose cannot go back to their previous family homes.

Link to article here



I certainly don't know if the above information is accurate or up-to-date. It apparently was written a few days prior to the Washington DC meeting with Obama, but more than likely has not changed in any significant way.

Don

Jerusalem - The Burdensome Stone

Zechariah 12:2,3 NASB
Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.

Zechariah 12:2,3 KJV
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.

Zechariah 12:2,3 NIV
I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.


From almost any Bible translation you might prefer to use, the message is clear. The Lord God is warning that in the last days just before Jesus' return, Jerusalem would be the center of attention and conflict for all who would attempt to control that great city, the apple of God's eye.

One cannot listen to the news broadcasts or read the printed media today without learning of some new treaty proposal, on-going terrorist actions, high-level meetings between world leaders, military threats, sanctions, matters of occupation, etc. The list goes on and on - and the battle over Jerusalem is intensifying each week.

The nations involved, including the USA, seem to be obsessed in their efforts to divide Jerusalem, with some determined to destroy Israel as a people and nation. The intensity of those efforts was hardly news worthy just a few years ago, but now occupy the news headlines everywhere.

Bible prophecy continues to rapidly unfold even as you read this. Yes, Jerusalem has now become the burdensome stone the prophet Zechariah wrote about almost 2500 years ago. From those Scriptures, we also know that God has promised to destroy the nations that go up against Israel. I personally believe that Jerusalem is God's "line in the sand", and when crossed, His fierce wrath and judgment will be unleashed on the unbelieving world.

Our Lord came here the first time...exactly as Scripture said He would. Our Lord is sure to return a second time...exactly as the Scriptures say He will. We are living in the last days. His return is imminent. Come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Don

God will curse those who come against Israel-Jerusalem

Beware! You’re in grave danger

Posted on Wednesday 2 December 2009

This is an open letter to United Nations and European Union staff members posted in Jerusalem and Israel. Had I the funds I would print this and place it on every one of the myriad UN and EU vehicles driving around this city. Meanwhile hopefully someone will pick it up and pass it on – Stan

==========================

Dear United Nations or European Union employee stationed in Israel.

You are receiving this notice because it is quite possible that the organization you work for has failed to fully and fairly apprise you of all the realities that come with your posting to Jerusalem or wherever you have been stationed in this country.

Doubtless, before you accepted the position, you learned of all the benefits that come with being on the staff of the UN or EU; the plus side must be considerably attractive, given the number of these organizations’ personnel working in the land.

Or perhaps you are here on a mission; out of a noble desire to help the underdog?

Whatever the case, it is only right you should also know that your presence here, and the activities that occupy you in Israel, place you in potentially grave, personal danger.

You may have to endure quite terrifying consequences for a long, long time to come.

As you may know, Israel is not just another country, and Jerusalem is not just another city.

More than 4000 years ago this land was given by divine decree to three men, who became the Founding Fathers of the most enduring nation in history. (Genesis 13:14-17; Genesis 26:2-3; Genesis 28:13,14)

Whether or not you believe in God – the God of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of the Bible – the land of Israel, and specifically those parts the UN and EU call “occupied Arab lands,” were given by Him exclusively to the Jews, forever.

The Bible calls Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, “the city of the great King.” (Psalm 48:2; Matthew 5:35)

It is referring to Jesus Christ, the Son of God who lived, died and rose again in this city, and who will soon be coming back to reign in this very place – Jerusalem. The site of His Throne Room – according to the same Bible – is the Temple Mount, situated in what you call “Eastern Jerusalem” – that part of Jerusalem the EU and UN want to see becoming the capital of a State of Palestine.

And according to the same Holy Book, God takes a very dim view indeed of any nation that puts its hand to the division of His land. He has vowed to deal extremely harshly with those who do this. God has, He says, “a day of vengeance for the controversy of Zion.” (Joel 3:2; Isaiah 34:1-8)

Browse the Prophets, and you can read about all that will happen to the UN and EU if they insist on forcing the Jewish people to relinquish this land in order to appease and placate the Arabs.

You drive through this city, your logo blazoned brazenly on your vehicle, openly supporting those who hate Israel and working hand in hand with those who pla to take the most important parts of Jerusalem away from the Jews.

The UN and EU reject Israel’s sovereign claim to its ancient capital; they reject the millennia-old claim of the Jewish people to Samaria and Judea – the cradle of their nationhood.

And the UN and EU are determined to impose their will on this, one of the very smallest of the world’s nations.

I am not sure which country you come from, but I am betting the Jewish homeland and the Jewish people have been around a whole lot longer than your nation has.

How dare the UN/EU aid and abet in this way those out to steal the historic Land of Israel from its rightful owners?

You should take note of the fact that Israel has outlasted all the great empires of time. Take careful note: Israel will also outlast the United Nations, the EU, and the rest of the nations who form the so-called Quartet.

And as for the fate of those nations - your nation? As much as the Jews have been singled out for persecution and hatred down through the centuries, so much more will the nations represented in the UN/EU suffer.

God has said He will take the cup of suffering away from Israel and force the nations to drink its bitter dregs themselves. (Isaiah 51:21-23)

Mark these words.

What does this mean for you personally as a member of the UN? In what way will you be held accountable for your role in this? That’s something that you will have to answer in and to yourself. It is certainly something you are set to find out, and I envy you not at all.

Believe me - no matter how honorable you might consider your actions here, you are in for a very rude awakening. Like me, like every individual human being, you are destined to stand before the Almighty one day and give account of your deeds.

You do have a way out - possibly a few to choose from: You can either work within your organization to change the biased and unjust approach it has assumed in dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian issue. Or you can ask for a transfer to another country where the UN operates.

Or – and this is probably the safest option – you can resign.

The choice is yours. If you ignore this word, beware, for “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

The Land of Israel and the city of Jerusalem belong to the Jews. Stop working to wrest it from them. You have no right to do so.

Sincerely, and with the very best of intentions towards you

Stan Goodenough

Jerusalem

Baruch atem b'Shem, Yeshua