60 seconds with the general director Apr/May 1975

Dear Friend,

Anti-Semitism is an ugly word — just men have always abhored it. But, like a bad dream, it won’t go away. More than 3,500 years ago Pharaoh of Egypt enslaved the Jewish people. Later, God said to His servant, Moses,

“. . . I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, . . . And I am come down to deliver them . . .” Exodus 3:7, 8

But history has repeated itself again and again. In every age pharaohs have arisen to persecute the Jew and God has come down to deliver them. The Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Medes, the Persians and the Greeks — each wanted a piece of the action and rose up to oppose, to persecute, to imprison, to murder and to plunder the descendants of Abraham through Jacob.

On this side of Calvary, Rome, the “Christian” crusaders, the Spanish Inquisition, the Russian pogroms and the Holocaust are representative of the continuous, relentless persecution of the Jew.

Today, back in their land after 2,000 years of wandering, they have had to defend themselves on four separate occasions in 25 years. At first, the nations of the world, conscience-stricken because of the atrocities of the Second World War, were sympathetic to the modern State of Israel. Sympathy turned to admiration as the Israelis courageously fought for survival in 1948, 1956, and again in 1967. Since the Yom Kippur War of 1973; more particularly, since the energy crisis and the spotlight on the importance of Middle East oil, support for Israel has rapidly and almost universally deteriorated. The United States, alone, among the major powers, has continued to actively support Israel.

Concurrent with the loss of support, latent anti-Semitism once again has begun to raise its ugly head. Historians and social scientists are hard pressed to explain the cause of anti-Semitism. Many have blamed it on Israel’s “unique” religion; others, on their abrasive character; and some, on their disproportionate wealth and influence.

HOW WRONG! HOW UTTERLY AND COMPLETELY WRONG!!! THE FOUNTAIN OF HATRED OF THE JEW CAN BE TRACED DIRECTLY TO SATAN’S ATTEMPT TO FRUSTRATE AND DEFEAT THE PLAN AND PROGRAM OF GOD FOR WORLD REDEMPTION. The declaration Jesus made can never be muted,

“. . . for salvation is of the Jews.” John 4:22

In His sovereignty, God chose Israel to be the instrument for universal blessing. It was through that people that the Messiah – Redeemer was to come into the world. His first appearance, as a Lamb, was for the express purpose of dying for the world’s sin. His second appearance, as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, will have among its goals the recapturing of man’s lost destiny as King of the earth and the permanent defeat of Satan. Both appearances require the existence of the Jewish people — thus Satan’s long and continuing battle against God’s elect nation.

On our cover we have asked the provocative question, “Who’s Next?” Every nation that has turned against Israel has experienced the wrath of God. For 25 years the United States has supported Israel in part because of Jewish influence in the United States, but more fundamentally because our foreign policy and their welfare coincided.

Today, due to the energy shortage, pressure is being “brought to bare” to change our pro-lsrael position. Many would have us believe that expediency supersedes morality.

If the feared energy shortage materializes,
If unemployment continues to increase,
If the economy continues to deteriorate,
If lawlessness continues to go unchecked,
If food shortages become a reality,
then when the United States looks around for a scapegoat — it will quickly find the Jew to blame, and the 6,000,000 Jews in the United States will start an “Exodus” back to Israel. If you don’t think the picture described above can occur perhaps it is because you understand neither history nor the unregenerate heart.

But what of the United States if this hypothetical situation does materialize? Then, like every nation before her, she will feel the angry wrath of God in judgment, and in the end — the very end —

Israel will stand looking down into the graves of those who persecuted her through the centuries. A popular Israeli saying is AM YISROEL CHAI – it means, “The people of Israel lives!” It cannot be otherwise, for an immutable God has decreed it!

Yours in the One Who keeps Israel
and Who neither slumbers nor sleeps,

Marvin J. Rosenthal
General Director

Features

Antique fountain pen on parchment.

From the Editor May/Jun 2024

Ever since God promised the land of Israel to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob nearly 4,000 years ago, a yearning to live in this Holy Land...

Conquering our Kvetching

My beloved mother was a five-star kvetch. This Yiddish term describes a habitual complainer—and my mother was...

The Fight to Survive

From Egypt’s Pharaoh to Persia’s Haman to Germany’s Hitler, many a world leader has attempted to destroy the Jewish people, defying God’s declaration...

The Forgotten Ones

As of June 2023, according to the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Refugees, the world has 108.4 million displaced people...

Israel’s Never-Ending Struggle

The Arab-Israeli conflict is often perceived as a highly intricate issue involving a multitude of historical, political, and social elements...

Bordering on Normal

Israel is bordered by Lebanon and Syria in the north, Jordan in the east, the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and Egypt in the south. No map, however, conveys the...


Share Your Story.
Has God used The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry in your life? Share your story with us!
 

Subscription Options

1 Year Digital Subscription

  • Free PDF Book Download - "What on Earth is God Doing?" by Renald Showers

  • Free Full-Issue Flipbook & PDF Download of Current Issue

$9.99 every 1 year

1 Year Digital with Archive Access

  • Free PDF Book Download - "What on Earth is God Doing?" by Renald Showers

  • Free Full-Issue Flipbook & PDF Downloads of Current Issue & select Archives

  • Complete Access to our Growing Archive - eventually dating back through our inaugural 1942 issue

$19.99 every 1 year

2 Year Digital Subscription

  • Free PDF Book Download - "What on Earth is God Doing?" by Renald Showers

  • Free Full-Issue Flipbook & PDF Download of Current Issue

$19.99 every 2 years

2 Year Digital with Archive Access

  • Free PDF Book Download - "What on Earth is God Doing?" by Renald Showers

  • Free Full-Issue Flipbook & PDF Downloads of Current Issue & select Archives

  • Complete Access to our Growing Archive - eventually dating back through our inaugural 1942 issue

$39.99 every 2 years

3 Year Digital Subscription

  • Free PDF Book Download - "What on Earth is God Doing?" by Renald Showers

  • Free Full-Issue Flipbook & PDF Download of Current Issue

$29.99 every 3 years

3 Year Digital with Archive Access

  • Free PDF Book Download - "What on Earth is God Doing?" by Renald Showers

  • Free Full-Issue Flipbook & PDF Downloads of Current Issue & select Archives

  • Complete Access to our Growing Archive - eventually dating back through our inaugural 1942 issue

$59.99 every 3 years