The Secret to Israel’s Success
Yael Eckstein | July 17, 2022
If the LORD had not been on our side
when people attacked us,
they would have swallowed us alive
when their anger flared against us… — Psalm 124:2-3
In honor of my father, Fellowship Founder Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, of blessed memory, and his lifework helping Christians understand the Jewish roots of their faith, I offer you one of his devotional teachings from the beloved Psalms.
Israel is 1/800th the size of the Arab world, most of which is bent upon destroying her. By all natural calculations, Israel should not exist. Israel should have disappeared before she even declared independence. How is it possible for such a tiny nation to survive in the midst of her enemies? It’s like Daniel in the lion’s den!
The truth is that Israel should have disappeared long ago, with all of the other nations of the world that have come and gone, risen and fallen. No other nation on earth has been expelled from its own homeland and then survived to return to it. And Israel did it twice — once in 538 B.C.E., and then again, more than 2,000 years later in 1948. Israel is one big miracle!
In 1898, long before the miracle of the re-birth of Israel came into being, Mark Twain was perplexed as to how the Jewish people could even be alive. He wrote this: “The Greeks and the Romans… are gone; other people have sprung up and held their torch for a time but it burned out… the Jews saw them all, survived them all… all things are mortal but the Jew… What is the secret of his immortality?”
The secret of the immortality of the Jews is actually no secret at all. God stated very clearly that He will preserve the Jews and bring them back to Israel. Here is just one example: “‘I am with you and will save you,’ declares the LORD. ‘Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I will not completely destroy you’” (Jeremiah 30:11).
The Secret to Israel’s Success
The psalmist wrote, “If the LORD had not been on our sidewhen people attacked us,they would have swallowed us alive.” In every generation, someone tries to destroy the Jews, yet every time the plot is foiled. The psalmist continued, “The snare has been broken and we have escaped” (v.7). Just when the Jews seem trapped and slated for destruction, the trap is broken and the Jews are saved. God steps in and that’s why the Jews are still here today. The secret to Israel’s success is her secret weapon: God!
Friends, when you need some inspiration or encouragement to believe that anything is possible with God, you need not look any further than Israel. If Israel can beat the odds, so can you. If Israel can receive miracles, so can you. The God of Israel can do anything, so never lose hope.
We know the secret to Israel’s success, and God can be our secret weapon, too.