The Root of Anti-Semitism..

by Stanley Rosenthal

     The very instant that we made reference to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, it invoked a cry from the deepest recesses of their inner-being…"where was God during our worst nightmare?…the systematic expunging of the Jewish people and the depth of the atrocities delivered at the hands of Hitler and his minions.

     Strolling through the mainly Jewish shopping areas in Tolouse, France, I and some church members to whom I was ministering spent many precious hours seeking to lovingly share Yeshua Mashiach (Jesus Christ) with what was mostly elderly shop keepers. For the most part, they bore a series of numbers engraved on their forearms. If one did not recognize from whence these Jews came, it did not take long to hear it from their agonizing hearts…they were Holocaust victims.

     While this was the worst atrocity that has thus far befallen the children of the biblical Patriarchs, it does not stand as an isolated incident. In reality, this anti-Semitic behavior has been evident throughout most of the history of this uniquely chosen lot. There was hardly a time when one nation or another was not seeking to destroy Jehovah’s people and confiscate their land. And the regretful fact, according to Scripture is, it will continue right up to and through the well documented seven year Tribulation that lies ahead for the Jewish people.  

Source 

     For one group of people to be set aside and identified for such inconceivable and inhumane treatment, lasting nearly 4000 years, it begs for an explanation. It stands to reason that there must be an underlying motive.

     There are two termini points which began and will end a clash of the two most potent beings ever to exist. This conflict has been responsible for the anguish planet earth and its residents have experienced, and more to the point for this article, the root cause for anti-Semitism. This collision, which is to blame for our world being turned upside down and inside out, can be traced back to pre-creation, before the events described in Genesis chapters one and two.  

Self Delusion 

     Somewhere and sometime prior to God’s almighty handiwork in bringing into existence the universe and all that is in it, a whole host of angels were created. Despite the fact that these marvelous incorporeal creatures share many attributes, qualities, and characteristics in common; Scripture reveals that there is an order and a hierarchy to this spirit world (Ephesians 1:21; 6:12; Colossians 1:16). One individual angel in particular was crafted by God to be superior to all the rest.

     Resident within all the angels was the ability to exercise free will. They had the capacity to choose once and only once for all eternity, whether or not to comply with the one who fashioned them. This was no different for the one who stood head over heels above the other angels. The Bible reveals that he was self deluded. His arrogance, conceit, and self-importance got the best of him. His sin of pride eroded his ability to discern the difference between the Creator and the created. He was driven to the act of mutiny against the Almighty (Isaiah 14:12-14; Ezekiel 28: 12-18). His choice was sealed along with one third of all the angels he was able to persuade to follow him (Revelation 12:4). His name was "Lucifer", but he has been called by other recognizable names such as the serpent, the dragon, the Devil, and of course, Satan. 

Change of Venue     

     With Satan cast out of heaven and forced to roam the earth, everything began to change (Revelation 12:3-4). His appetite for power and authority was far from being satisfied with just an army of demonic angels. His desires grew as his taste for supremacy increased. He could not be out done by the Almighty if he was to reach his goal of sitting upon the throne of God. 

     With the advent of earth and in particular the marvelous creation of humanity, Satan’s jealousy was getting the best of him. He now had his target. It did not take him long to form a strategy. He knew only too well, that the Creator was increasing His domain by establishing a "Theocratic Kingdom" on earth. Now, not only did God have His heavenly angelic kingdom, but a new type of creature fashioned after the very image and likeness of the Godhead was brought forth (Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7, 21-23). God immediately began communion with Adam and Eve, and they all enjoyed a mutual benefit from this relationship.   

Satanocracy 

     Like the angels, humanity was created with free will. Latent within humanity’s oldest ancestors was the ability to choose for themselves to whom they would yield their allegiance (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:6-7). Satan vaulted at this opportunity to make inroads in his battle against his nemesis, the Almighty One. Essentially, his plan was to turn mankind against their creator… in essence, begin the process of their walking to the beat of his drum (Genesis 3: 1-5; Ephesians 2:2). Satan’s desire was and still is to establish his own kingdom in contrast to God’s. Earth’s first couple fell prey to his scheme of lying and enticement with the end result of his leading them to voluntarily become disobedient to God.  

Satan’s Enlightenment 

     Lucifer’s first skirmish with God resulted in his change of residence. This time, his deceptive and manipulative input into God’s direct relationship with mankind brought about a much more severe outcome…the pronouncement of his ultimate demise!  

          And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shall bruise his heel. (Genesis 3:15) 

     This became a wake up call for Satan. It was not a vague, ambiguous threat. God’s judgment upon Satan was clear…a death blow to be delivered by an individual from within humanity lay in store for him. Combined with and at the very core of this event, was the first prophecy of mankind’s redemption, "… and thou shall bruise his heel".

     Now armed with this knowledge, Satan began to fight back still seeking to fulfill his prideful desires.  All he would have to do is beat the seed of the woman to the punch by doing away with him before he could bring to fruition God’s prophecy concerning his destruction and the redemption of mankind. 

Target in Sight 

     This accounts for Adam and Eve’s first child Cain killing his brother Abel. It seemed obvious to Satan that Abel was the righteous brother and hence his future destroyer (Genesis 4:8; 1 John 3:12). Jesus had this in mind when he stated that the Devil was a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44).

     Recognizing he was mistaken once Abram entered the picture, Satan reset his sights to squash the promise made to Abram:  "…and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed." (Genesis 12:3b),  "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; …"(Genesis 22:18a).

     God was very precise in his oath made to Abraham. He stated that His pledge would not be fulfilled through Ishmael, but rather miraculously through Isaac, the promised son to Abraham and Sarah, not Abraham and Hagar (Genesis 17:16-19). This covenant then, in actuality, was passed on to Isaac (Genesis 26:3-4). Then Esau, one of Isaac’s twin sons, was bypassed even though he was the older of the two. Instead, Jacob was God’s sovereign choice of lineage for the promised seed. (Genesis 28:13-14; 35:11-12). Jacob, who had his name changed by God to Israel, produced the twelve sons who ultimately became the foundation of the nation of Israel (Genesis 49:1-28).                  

     There was no doubt by now that the sons of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the nation of Israel stood in the way of Satan’s fantasy. They became his target. Destroy them and he would thrive and achieve his goal of rising above the Almighty. After all, if God could not fulfill His own prophecies due to Satan’s interference, then obviously that would allow Satan to claim victory over the Almighty God. 

Victory or Defeat 

     The death blow was delivered to Satan at the crucifixion of the Messiah in accordance with the first recorded biblical prophecy (Genesis 3:15). All of Satan’s aggressive actions to keep Jesus, the promised seed, from going to the cross were totally ineffective (Matthew 2:1-4, 16; 4:1-11). Even though Satan was judged and found guilty at the cross, the carrying out of his sentence was delayed until a future time.

     At Messiahs first appearance, He came as the "sacrificial lamb", judging Lucifer and providing redemption for mankind (Isaiah 53:4-8; Zech. 9:9; 1 Corinthians 5:7). When He gloriously appears the second time, He will bind Satan and cast him into the bottomless pit for 1,000 years. And as promised, He will also establish the Millennial Kingdom for Israel and the nations (Revelation 19:11-20:3; Isaiah 9:6-7; Zechariah 14; Matthew 24-25).

     The final nails in Satan’s coffin take place at the end of the Millennium. He is once and for all thrust into the "eternal lake of fire" (Revelation 20:7-10). He has no power or authority over God! 

Interlude 

     In the meantime, during the period between the two advents of Jesus, Satan is very much alive and kicking (Ephesians. 2: 2; 6:11, 16; 1 Peter 5:8). Somehow, as unbelievable as it seems, he still is hallucinating. He believes that as long as there is "breath" remaining in him, he has a fighting chance to defeat the Almighty (Revelation 12:13-17).

     He knows that God’s final solution for him is directly tied to the Jewish people, the return of Christ and the reclaiming of His earthly Kingdom as King of kings and LORD of lords, and Jesus’ heirship to the throne of David in Jerusalem.

     If Satan can rid the world of the Jews, then there would be no nation of Israel, no capital city of Jerusalem, no throne of David, and no need for a Kingdom Age promised to the Jewish people. This would in turn thwart Jesus’ return and would establish Satan as victor. Here lies the biblical explanation for the hatred against the Jews, since the time of the cross. 

Thoughts to Ponder 

     Is it any wonder why God promised blessings or curses to those who bless or curse the seed of Abraham? Or why God refers to the Jewish people as the apple of His eye? Or why He commands us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem? Or why at the second coming of Christ, He will judge the nations based on how they treated or mistreated His brethren, the Jewish people? (Genesis 12:3; Zechariah 2:8; Psalm 122:6; Matthew 25:31-46)

     The final thought to ponder? Where do you stand in your attitudes and actions toward the Jewish people and Israel?