What Should We Think About the Presence of the Palestinian People Alongside the Jewish Population in the Land of Israel?
Does Yehoah, the Elohim of Israel, Provide Any Insight on This in His Word?

Palestinians and Israelis dispute ownership over all or a significant part of the land that is now primarily under the authority of the Jewish state of Israel.
Certain Israeli political parties and mainly American Christian fundamentalists are inclined to believe that the land of Israel already belongs by divine right to the Jewish people, and that it must be regarded as a sacred gift from Elohim.

But is there not a meaningful reason for the presence of the Palestinian people in the land of Israel?

What does our Father Yehoah, the Elohim of Israel, say about this?

This question is indeed crucial for the community of believers, who must understand the proper attitude to adopt on this matter!

Let us begin with a bit of history.

1. The Land of Canaan

First, the land of Israel was formerly called the land of Canaan, as stated in Numbers 13:1:

"Yehoah spoke to Moses and said, ‘Send men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel. Send one man from each of their ancestral tribes, all of them leaders among them.’ Moses sent them from the Desert of Paran according to Yehoah’s command; all these men were heads of the children of Israel."

It is this land of Canaan that Yehoah promised to Abram and his descendants, according to Genesis 17:8:

“I will give to you and to your descendants after you the land where you are now a foreigner—all the land of Canaan—as an everlasting possession; and I will be their Elohim.”

In the land promised by Yehoah lived most of the descendants of Canaan (1 Chronicles 1:13–16 and Genesis 15:18–21):
the Amorites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Sidonians, Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Rephaim, Girgashites, and Jebusites.

Even in the time of Abraham, the city of Salem—also known as Jerusalem—was already in this land. Its king at the time was Melchizedek, the priest of Elohim (Genesis 14:18).

It is upon this Jerusalem that Yehoah set His affection, choosing her to be His bride, the mother of all His future children—long before the twelve tribes of Israel existed, as stated in Ezekiel 16:3 and 8:

"3 Say: Thus says the Lord Yehoah to Jerusalem: ‘Your origin and your birth were in the land of Canaan; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. …
8 Then I passed by you and saw you, and behold, you were at the age for love. I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I swore an oath to you, entered into a covenant with you,’ declares the Lord Yehoah, ‘and you became Mine.’"

2. The Iniquity of the Amorites Reaches Its Full Measure

Already in Abraham's time, Yehoah knew He would end the dominion of the peoples living in Canaan because of their iniquity. But during Abraham’s lifetime, their sins had not yet reached their full measure (Genesis 15:16).

This shows that Yehoah punishes those who do not love Him, who disobey His commandments, and commit abominations—such as making their children pass through the fire. This is explained in Deuteronomy 18:

“9 When you enter the land that Yehoah your Elohim is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of those nations.
10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft,
11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.
12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to Yehoah, and because of these detestable practices, Yehoah your Elohim will drive out those nations before you.”

3. The Conquest of the Land of Canaan by the Twelve Tribes of Israel

Next came the conquest of Canaan, led primarily by Joshua, who succeeded Moses as leader of the children of Israel.

At the end of Joshua’s life, Yehoah spoke to the people, as recorded in Joshua 24:

“2 Joshua said to all the people: ‘This is what Yehoah, the Elohim of Israel, says…
11 Then you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The citizens of Jericho fought against you, as did the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, but I gave them into your hands.
12 I sent the hornet ahead of you, which drove them out before you—also the two kings of the Amorites. You did not do it with your own sword and bow.
13 So I gave you a land you did not toil for and cities you did not build—and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.
14 Now fear Yehoah and serve Him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve Yehoah.’”

4. The Territory of the Jewish People Is Only a Small Portion of Israel

It is important to remember that, contrary to popular belief today, the land of Canaan was given by Yehoah to all twelve tribes of Israel—of which the Jewish people represent only a small portion.

Commonly, people say that the "Jewish people" came out of Egypt and crossed the Red Sea (or Reed Sea). But this is inaccurate. The term Jew (Hebrew: Yehudi) first appears in 2 Kings 16:6, during the reign of Ahaz, king of Judah—eleven kings after Solomon, following the division of the united kingdom.

King Ahaz was not pleasing to Yehoah, for he followed pagan customs and even made his son pass through the fire. At that time, the kingdom of Judah was at war with the northern kingdom of Israel.

Thus, we must correct the timeline: the Jewish people today are descended primarily from the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, Simeon, and Levi, who lived in the kingdom of Judah. Their territory was roughly the southern half of what is today known as Israel.

5. Yehoah Prophesied Through Isaiah That the Descendants of Judah Would One Day Bear the Name “Israel”

This remarkable prophecy is found in Isaiah 48:1–2, where Yehoah rebukes His people:

“Listen to this, house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel and who came from the waters of Judah; you who swear by the name of Yehoah and invoke the Elohim of Israel—but not in truth or righteousness.
For they call themselves citizens of the holy city…”

Historically, the Jewish people have always been associated with the kingdom of Judah or Judea during the Roman Empire. It was only in 1947 that they officially adopted the name Israel for the modern state.

The term Zionism was coined in 1890 to describe the nationalist movement of part of the Jewish people seeking to establish a Jewish homeland in the land of Israel—roughly corresponding to Canaan, the Holy Land, or the region of Palestine (source: Wikipedia).

6. Already at the End of Joshua’s Life, the Israelites Disobeyed Yehoah

After entering the Promised Land, the Israelites quickly began forming alliances with the native inhabitants and failed to destroy their altars, as commanded. This is found in Judges 2:

“1 An angel of Yehoah went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, ‘I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land I swore to give to your ancestors. I said, “I will never break My covenant with you,
2 and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.” Yet you have disobeyed Me. Why have you done this?’”

Because of this breach of the covenant, Yehoah solemnly decided not to drive out the remaining nations. Instead, He would use them as a test for the Israelites, as we read in Judges 2:20–23:

“20 Therefore the anger of Yehoah burned against Israel and He said, ‘Because this nation has violated the covenant I ordained for their ancestors and has not listened to Me,
21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died.
22 I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of Yehoah and walk in it as their ancestors did.’
23 Yehoah had allowed those nations to remain; He did not drive them out quickly by giving them into the hands of Joshua.”

7. During the period of the Judges, the children of Israel repeatedly committed actions that displeased Yehoah!

For over 300 years, the children of Israel did evil in the sight of Yehoah on at least six occasions, according to Judges 2:11; 3:7, 12; 4:1; 6:1; 8:33; 10:6; and 13:1.
Each time, Yehoah allowed foreign nations—enemies of Israel—to rise up and severely chastise them.

8. The continued presence of these peoples in the land of Israel has lasted to this day, just as Yehoah had foretold during the time of the Judges.

As we continue through the history of the Kingdom of Israel and then the Kingdom of Judah, we see that Yehoah consistently used these enemy nations to punish the Israelites whenever they turned away from Him. Often, it was the Philistines who played a leading role in their conflicts with Israel.

These foreign peoples again posed a threat to the Jewish people when they were allowed by Cyrus, king of Persia, to return and settle in what would become Judea. In this specific case, these peoples also served to test the Jewish people. Under Nehemiah’s leadership, they had to rebuild the wall and the Temple in Jerusalem despite constant threats from Sanballat the Horonite and his men, who sought to kill them or report them to the king of Persia, as recorded in Nehemiah chapters 4 and 6.

Sadly, some Jews stumbled by profaning the Sabbath when Tyrians came to sell goods on that day. Others, including the grandson of the high priest, married foreign women—Ashdodites, Ammonites, or Moabites (Nehemiah 13). This intermixing led the Jewish people, including priests and Levites, to once again imitate the abominations of the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and Amorites (Ezra 9:1–2).

These abominations persisted for nearly a thousand years, from the Israelites’ entry into the Promised Land.

9. What about in the time of Yeshouah, the son of Yehoah?

At the time of Yeshouah, Judea was part of the Roman Empire. To the north was Samaria, inhabited by Samaritans—a pagan population descended from the Babylonians and other nations resettled by the Assyrian kings after the deportation of the Israelites (2 Kings 17:24):

“The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Samaria to replace the Israelites. They took over Samaria and lived in its towns.”

Initially, Yeshouah instructed his disciples not to go to these people, as seen in Matthew 10:5:

“These twelve Yeshouah sent out with the following instructions: ‘Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.’”

It was only later that the good news of the Kingdom was also preached to them, because Yeshouah—like Paul—always gave priority to the Jewish people.

We must also consider the immense influence of Roman power over the Jewish population, including the high priests of that time, who shockingly declared, as recorded in John 19:15:

“‘Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!’
‘Shall I crucify your king?’ Pilate asked.
‘We have no king but Caesar,’ the chief priests answered.”

These words are sacrilegious, as they represent a rejection of Yehoah’s kingship—He who is the Elohim of Israel.

10. The State of Israel in our time.

We now arrive at our own time, when the Jewish people have, by the grace of Yehoah their Elohim, miraculously regained possession of the land of Israel! Yet once again, Yehoah has fulfilled His word by allowing the Palestinian people to remain on this land—as a test or a stumbling block for the Jewish people, to see whether they will stray from Him or remain faithful (Judges 3:4).

Sadly, a significant portion of the Jewish people have turned away from their Elohim, adopting worldly customs that displease Yehoah and neglecting His Ten Words (Commandments).

What has happened before is happening again today: the Palestinian people and their supporters in the Middle East are the source of much suffering, sometimes very cruel.

Yehoah Elohim shows no partiality.

There is extraordinary proof that Yehoah shows no favoritism in His decision to allow pagan nations to remain as a trial for His people on a land that ultimately belongs to Him, as stated in Leviticus 25:

“1 Yehoah spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying:
2 Speak to the children of Israel and say to them...
23 The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is Mine, and you reside in My land as foreigners and strangers.”

This principle was also applied to His own Son, Yeshouah!

Indeed, Yeshouah—being part of the Jewish nation—was also confronted with the presence of the prince of this world, whom Yehoah allowed to test all humans, including His firstborn son, as seen in Luke 4:

“[...] Yeshouah, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. [...]”

Despite the devil’s proposals, Yeshouah—like David in his time—did not let himself be seduced:

He did exactly what pleases his Father.

Let us return to the initial questions raised in this article:

What should we think about the presence of the Palestinian people alongside the Jewish population in the land of Israel?
Does Yehoah, the Elohim of Israel, give us any guidance on this in His Word?

One of the Bible’s teachings is that before making a decision or forming a judgment, it is always wise to consult Yehoah Elohim—either by seeking instruction in His Word or through prayer.

Let us recall what happened in the time of Joshua with the Gibeonites, who acted very cleverly. Yet Joshua and the Israelites were deceived because they did not consult Yehoah, as seen in Joshua 9:

“14 The men of Israel took some of their provisions, but did not inquire of Yehoah.
15 Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath.
16 Three days after they made the treaty with the Gibeonites, they learned that they were neighbors, living near them.”

Another response to these questions lies in the example of Yeshouah, the Anointed One.

Yeshouah never took sides in political matters or movements of his time in Judea.
He never called for protests, and even when addressing Satan himself, he remained respectful, countering temptation solely with the Word of his Heavenly Father.

In John 4, we see that, contrary to Jewish tradition, Yeshouah openly speaks with a Samaritan woman and even stays two days with the Samaritans to share the good news.

Yeshouah never challenged Roman authority over Judea. On the contrary, he acknowledged it when he said, “Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s”, and respectfully responded to Pilate, declaring in John 18:

“My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

Later, after being mistreated by the Romans, Yeshouah made it clear to Pilate that his authority came from above (John 19):

“You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.”

The only time Yeshouah sharply criticized authority was within the Temple—the house of His Father—where He had the duty to expose the wickedness of the religious leaders. That is when He called them a brood of vipers and said their father was the devil (John 8:44).

And we, even with deep sympathy for the Jewish people and the State of Israel, must never take sides in political matters, for all powers are established by Yehoah Elohim—whether it be the State of Israel or the Palestinian people. The latter, in a way, are a stumbling block permitted by Elohim to test or chastise Israel when they do what displeases Him, just as was determined during the time of the Judges—and so it remains to this day.

In conclusion, let us not pass rash judgment but reflect on this prophecy in Isaiah 8:

“13 Yehoah Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,
he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread.
14 He will be a sanctuary;
but for both houses of Israel he will be a stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.
For the people of Jerusalem he will be a trap and a snare.
15 Many of them will stumble;
they will fall and be broken,
they will be snared and captured.
16 Bind up this testimony of warning
and seal up God’s instruction among my disciples.
17 I will wait for Yehoah,
who is hiding his face from the descendants of Jacob.
I will put my trust in him.”