How Can Anyone Be Pro-Palestinian? A Biblical Scholar Explains

Editor’s Note: The following article appeared in the March/April issue of Nurturing Faith Journal. It has been updated to reflect the number of deaths in the war between Israel and Hamas. All photos, unless otherwise noted, courtesy of the author.

Since the October 7, 2023 attack of Hamas militants in southern Israel and Israel’s subsequent response of pounding Gaza with tons of bombs, I have often overheard relatives and others make the statement: “I don’t understand how anyone can be pro-Palestinian.”

The statement was never made directly to me, perhaps for fear that I would disturb their comfort level by explaining it to them. I have visited Israel and the West Bank more than a dozen times, leading tours or participating in archaeological digs. I have Israeli friends as well as Palestinian friends. 

Many Americans have a skewed view of the current situation, primarily due to their misunderstandings of the relationship between biblical Israel and the modern State of Israel. The following are a series of talking points that might be helpful in our understanding of the conflict between the current Israeli government and the Palestinian residents of Gaza and the West Bank. 

Jews and Palestinians have common roots

First, it is important to understand terms properly. Biblical Israel, as described by authors of the Hebrew Bible, refers primarily to descendants of Abraham who were believed to be inheritors of a promise that God would grant Abraham a multitude of descendants and a land on which they could live (Genesis 12:1-3).

Hebrew tradition found in the “Table of the Nations” of Genesis 10 names all the various peoples, including different Canaanite groups, as common descendants of Noah (Gen. 10:15-18).

Not all Israelites were Abrahamic descendants: over the years, many other people married into Israelite families or chose to make common cause and become Hebrews through circumcising their males. Before the exile, Hebrews could also marry into different people groups without losing their Hebrew identity.

There was never a time when the people of biblical Israel did not share the land with other peoples. Hyperbolic language in Joshua claims they conquered the whole land and killed all its residents (Josh. 10:40-43, ll:16-20, 21:43-45), while more realistic language lists the many people groups they were unable to drive out (13:13; 15:63; 16:10; 17:11-13, 16-18; Judges 1:21, 27-36). Writing just before or during the exile, the authors often noted that other peoples lived among the Israelites “to this day.”

The constant temptation to worship the gods of other people, which was a key message the prophets continually admonished against, attests to the continual presence of other peoples in the land. The “Canaanites” (a term used by the Hebrews but not by the people themselves) were an amalgam of many different groups: Amorites, Hittites, Hivites, Girgashites, Jebusites, and so forth. Many of their descendants have lived in the land ever since. 

Multiple scientific studies have shown that even today, for most Jews, their closest genetic relatives are, notably, Palestinians. 

Biblical Israel and the modern State of Israel are not the same

Through much of its biblical history, based on texts in Exodus and Deuteronomy, the people of Israel believed they lived in a covenantal relationship in which God promised prosperity as a response to their obedience, and punishment when they were unfaithful. The receipt of these promises was clearly conditional. 

The authors of Israel’s theological history, from Joshua through Kings and its most prominent prophets, believed the people’s unfaithfulness to the covenant God Yahweh led to their losing the land. The Assyrians wiped out the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE. Many of its people were deported, and others were brought in to replace them. The southern kingdom of Judah fell to the Babylonians in 597 BCE. Waves of exiles were moved to Babylon in the years after, with only the poorest being left to farm the land.  

After the land was lost, prophets often proclaimed the hope of a return to Jerusalem, with people from all over the world looking to a restored and newly righteous Israel for leadership. For the most part, these hopes anticipated a new world age for all people, not just the possession of a specific piece of geography by Israel alone.

Except for Hasmonean rule from 140 to 37 BCE, the area known as Canaan or Palestine has been ruled by others: first Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians; then Greeks, Romans and Byzantine Christians. From the mid-seventh century until World War I, a series of Islamic dynasties, including the Mamluks and Ottomans, ruled the land, with brief interruptions by European Crusaders. The Al Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock have stood on the temple mount for more than 1200 years – more than twice as long as any Jewish temple. 

After World War I and the defeat of the Ottoman Turks, the League of Nations assigned control of Palestine and its primarily Arab population to Britain under what was known as the British Mandate. Jewish immigration, which had begun in the late 19th century, increased by largely peaceful means through the purchase of land.

In 1948, with Western nations fueled by guilt over the Holocaust, the British government persuaded the United Nations to partition the land, setting aside a large portion for the Palestinians and designating the remainder to create a Jewish homeland, even though the land was already populated by people who had lived there for hundreds or thousands of years. With conflict inevitable, many Arabs who could afford to relocate, including many Arab Christians, left the country. 

Zionist leaders in Israel declared independence in 1948, leading to a civil war between Jews and Arabs. The partitioning of the land, along with the “War of Independence,” drove more than 700,000 Palestinians from their homes. Today, more than 1.5 million Palestinians continue to live in 58 official UN-supported refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. The majority of residents in Gaza are refugees.

The original partition established a substantial portion of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as a homeland for Palestinians, while apportioning the remainder of the land to Jews. But the agreement was never fully honored. Following the War of Independence in 1948, Israelis seized considerably more of the land apportioned to Palestine. In the Six-Day War of 1967 and later accords, the State of Israel gained control of even greater tracts of land in the occupied territories, creating more refugees.

In the years since, in violation of international law, Israeli settlers, many emigrating from America, have continued to establish new settlements, towns and even major cities inside the West Bank. When settlements are established, the Israeli government takes over more Palestinian land to provide roads, infrastructure and security for the settlements, forcing even more Palestinians from their land and creating a territory that looks like Swiss cheese.

Today, only 11% of the West Bank, known as Area A, is under complete Palestinian control. It consists of non-contiguous enclaves, all of which are still subject to regular incursions by the Israeli army. Palestinians, even within the West Bank, are tightly restricted in their movement by Israeli walls, fences and checkpoints. 

 

“Israelite” and “Israeli” are not equivalent terms

“Israelite” refers to descendants of Abraham through the “Twelve Tribes” descended from Jacob, along with others who married into the people or made common cause with them. They were also known as Hebrews during the biblical period. 

During the very late postexilic period and into the first century CE, rabbinic Judaism emerged, gradually morphing into modern Judaism. Modern Jews retain an intimate connection with the heritage, promises and some traditions portrayed in the Hebrew Bible, though current practices are far removed from them. 

From the time of the post-exilic period on, maintaining a clear ethnic identity as Jews became a primary focus, and it has helped the Jews survive through centuries of pogroms and persecution.

“Israeli” refers to citizens of the modern State of Israel. Among the nearly ten million Israelis, just over seven million are Jews and more than two million are Arabs. Most Arabs in Israel follow the Islamic faith, while some are Druze and a few are Christian. Other minorities make up 5.5% of the population.

Among Jewish Israelis, nearly half self-identify as “secular” and a third as “traditional.” The areas around Jerusalem and the settlements are dominated by various strands of Orthodox and Ultra-Orthodox Jews. 

Most Israelis, especially in the large population center of Tel Aviv-Jaffo, do not support the current right-wing government. The country’s dysfunctional political system makes it difficult for more moderate voices to gain control from hardliners of the far right and their Orthodox supporters, who receive funding from the government for the men to study Torah without being required to work or serve in the military.

Except for a few ex-pats and foreign church officials who control various Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, virtually all Christians remaining in Israel and the West Bank are Arabs. 

Some deeply rooted beliefs are misguided

A belief known as American exceptionalism, closely related to Christian nationalism (and to white supremacy), holds that God has a special covenant with America. Adherents of American exceptionalism believe that just as Israel left slavery in Egypt to reach the promised land, early settlers also left persecution in England to possess a new land of promise with God’s blessing to displace the indigenous peoples who were already there. 

Modern devotees of this idea believe that America’s prosperity is tied to its unwavering support for Israel. The belief is often connected to a literal interpretation of Genesis 12:3, where God reportedly promised Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and those who curse you I will curse.”

Believing that the promise of Gen. 12:3 remains in effect – and that the modern State of Israel is equivalent to the people and land promised to Abraham – prominent televangelists like Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Jimmy Swaggert and John Hagee, along with a host of conservative pastors, have long promoted the belief that America must always support the modern nation-state of Israel in order to receive God’s blessings. 

Coming at the issue from a slightly different angle, many other Christians hold to an apocalyptic, dispensationalist view of history. They are not troubled by war in the Middle East (or other earth-destroying phenomena such as climate change) because they believe the end times are coming soon. Multiple YouTube videos by self-proclaimed experts on prophecy connect Israel’s war in Gaza to their interpretation of biblical end-times prophecies. They support Israel, but only as an end to bringing on Armageddon – a different type of anti-Semitism. 

What can we do?

While the Hebrew Bible attests that ancient Israel violated the covenant and thus lost the land, that does not mean the covenant was wholly annulled or that God no longer has a special relationship with the descendants of Israel. We can argue that the promise of land as an eternal possession no longer holds without adopting a wholly supersessionist view that God has written off the Jews. 

We should recognize that the Jews have suffered greatly through the years and understand why having a homeland is important to them. We also can support the people of Israel without supporting the actions of the current government, including the massive bombing of Gaza and the continued inhumane treatment of Palestinians in the West Bank. Israel currently holds about 4,500 Palestinians in prison, many without recourse to legal defense or a trial – and many of them women and children. 

We can recognize that “Palestinian,” “Hamas” and “terrorist” are not equivalent terms. Most Palestinians want to live in peace without further loss of land and rights. All Palestinians have abundant reasons to be highly resentful over both past and present oppression. If we were in their shoes, we would be angry, too. 

We must acknowledge that the October 7, 2023 massacre of 1,200 Israeli citizens, visitors and workers – along with the abduction of more than 200 hostages – by Hamas militants was horrific and inexcusable. Random missile fire into Israel is also unacceptable.

We must also question whether those actions justify the indiscriminate months of bombing that has leveled much of Gaza, and has killed more than 29,000 residents, including as many as 14,000 women and children between October 2023 and February 2024 – and the subjection of millions of residents of Gaza to starvation, thirst and disease through withholding aid and fuel. Some estimate that famine and disease may kill more than the bombs.

One can be pro-Israel without endorsing the current government’s aggressive military actions. 

One can be pro-Palestinian without endorsing acts of violence on the part of a few militants.

All of us can focus more on being pro-humanity, earnestly praying for and promoting approaches that foster peace and justice for all. 

More personally, we can seek to follow Jesus in loving our neighbors, engaging in conversation and acts of friendship with Jewish and Muslim people who live or work near us. 

But will we?