How to cite this article: Marvin R. Wilson, “Is Desiring Justice for Palestinians Anti-Semitic?” Jerusalem Perspective (2025) [https://www.jerusalemperspective.com/30404/].
If Christian readers of Jerusalem Perspective support the right of Israel to exist as a nation—and I believe they should—that support must primarily focus on what is moral, just, and humane rather than simply on the grounds that “it fulfills prophecy.” Our task is to “follow justice and justice alone,” and then to let God worry about whether or not this fulfills his future agenda for Israel.
As a secular state, Israel is not the kingdom of God. Christians today, therefore, should not blindly condone all her acts. Israel’s own prophets call her to practice justice and compassion to those “strangers” in the land. This means the displaced, homeless, and powerless. Therefore, if and when the State of Israel or its military violates the human rights of Palestinians or transgresses international law, it is a Christian’s duty to stand with the oppressed. It is neither wrong nor anti-Semitic for Christians to desire justice for Palestinians in Israel or anywhere in the world. Justice, however, is a two-way street. Christians should object to holding the State of Israel to a different standard of morality from that applied to other nation-states, especially to those committed to Israel’s destruction. And, of course, Christians should never condone acts of political violence or terror against Israel, no matter who commits them or what cause such acts are in aid of. Only when the bitterness, hatred, and demonization of the other give way to a spirit of compromise, friendship and mutual recognition will all residents of the land know peace.
| Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! (Amos 5:24; NIV) |
Christian “solidarity” with Israel does not imply the negation of Palestinians’ right to exist. This is not an “us” and “them,” “right” and “wrong” issue. Solidarity is not primarily about political agreement. Rather, it is identified with understanding the roots of Christianity that run deep in the soil of Judaism in that land and a commitment to the survival of a people to whom the Church is deeply indebted for those roots.
| This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. In your hearts do not think evil of each other.” (Zech. 7:9-10; NIV) |
Christians should beware of how divisions between Israelis and Palestinians are exacerbated by vicious rhetoric and stereotyping from leaders of both communities, and by the often-unbalanced coverage by the media of scenes involving riots and violence.
God alone is sovereign. He is Lord of life and Lord of land. We must make nothing of higher allegiance or allow anything to be of greater importance than him. We must not idolize the land.
| He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. (Isa. 2:4; NIV) |
Ultimately, genuine security for Israel does not lie in a garrisoned state built on jets, tanks, and missiles. Neither is peace to be found in a racist nationalism that calls for the expulsion of other peoples from the land. Rather, mutual recognition and reconciliation must be founded on scripturally based forgiveness.
Christians must refrain from quick-fix solutions to territorial and political disputes between Israelis and Palestinians. Neither group is going to leave the land. Each has a legitimate claim to be there. We do both parties an injustice if we seek to impose facile answers to complex age-long problems. We must encourage each group to negotiate a just and viable solution jointly. Both groups deserve the right of self-determination and the opportunity to live in security in the land. God is on the side of justice. He loves all people. One cannot be pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel; neither can one be pro-Israel and anti-Palestinian. While the church must never forget its historic and spiritual ties with the Jewish people, its present responsibility is to pray, encourage, and work for a permanent sharing of the land marked by a maximum of justice and a minimum of injustice.
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This article is a slightly revised version of an op-ed, which Dr. Wilson published in the Gordon College student newspaper The Tartan (vol. 45 no. 18) on May 2, 2002. It is republished here with Dr. Wilson’s permission and cooperation. |
