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09 November 2023

Eliezer Meir Saidel: To Whom Does Israel Belong? …Chayei Sarah Part II

 

Part II

HKB"H promised Eretz Yisrael to Avraham and his rightful descendants. Avraham's spiritual and material descendant was Yitzchak (see above). Yitzchak's spiritual and material descendant was Yaakov (who purchased the birthright from Eisav). The only nation with a legitimate claim to Eretz Yisrael is Am Yisrael, the descendants of Yaakov/Yisrael.

 

However, as we said above, Eretz Yisrael has zero tolerance for "impurity". It spits out those who are impure. When Am Yisrael sinned with the three cardinal sins שְׁפִיכוּת דָּמִים, גִּלּוּי עֲרָיוֹת וַעֲבוֹדָה זָרָה, HKB"H removed us temporarily from the land. We repented and HKB"H restored us to Eretz Yisrael. We sinned again with שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם and again HKB"H removed us temporarily from the land, this time for 1878 long years.

 

In this lengthy period of 1878 years of exile, not one single nation can lay any extended claim to Eretz Yisrael. It has been a repetitious pattern of one nation conquering it from another. Each time another conqueror seizes control over the land, the previous owners are disowned and the land is redistributed to the conqueror's allies, family, friends.

 

1272 BCE- Joshua conquers Canaan

832   BCE – Solomon builds 1st Temple

422   BCE – Babylon conquest, destruction of first Temple

352   BCE -  Ezra rebuilds 2nd Temple

70    CE – Romans destroy 2nd Temple, rename country Palestine

351  CE – Romans adopt Christianity. Byzantine rule

614  CE – Persian conquest

628  CE – Byzantine conquest

633  CE – Arab conquest

750  CE – Abbasid conquest

878  CE – Turkish conquest

904  CE – Abbasid conquest

934  CE – Egyptian conquest

970  CE – Byzantine conquest

1070 CE – Turkish conquest

1099 CE – Crusader conquest

1187 CE – Saladin/Kurdish conquest

1244 CE – Kharezmian conquest

1260 CE – Egyptian conquest

1299 CE – Mongol conquest

1516 CE – Ottoman conquest

1799 CE – Napoleonic conquest

1831 CE – Egyptian conquest

1840 CE – Turkish conquest

1917 CE – Allied conquest and British mandate


1948 CE – Establishment of the State of Israel

 

(Print this table and keep – דַּע מָה לְהָשִׁיב לָאַפִּיקוֹרֶס)

 

This list is like a game of "musical nations". Perhaps HKB"H orchestrated it in this way, allowing all these nations a shot at Eretz Yisrael and failing – to prove that the only nation that is truly worthy of it is Am Yisrael.

 

The "Palestinian" claim that Eretz Yisrael belongs to them and their "Palestinian Nation" is quite clearly false and ignores well documented, undisputed history - straight from the history books. 

There has never been a sovereign "State of Palestine" ever in history. The Israelites/Jews had sovereignty over the Land of Israel for 1342 years (interrupted only by one 70-year period during the Babylonian exile) preceding the founding of the Islamic faith, which then enjoyed a total of 900 years of rule in this land, interrupted frequently by the Byzantines, the Abbasids, the Crusaders, the Mongols, Napoleon and the British. 

900 years of interrupted Islamic sovereignty compared to a preceding 1300 years of consecutive Israeli sovereignty hardly gives the Islamic faith a historic claim over the Land of Israel.

 

Similarly, the "Palestinian" claim that they are descended from the Philistines does not give them right over Eretz Yisrael. Even if it were true (which it is not), the Philistines originated in the Aegean. Similarly, any claims that they were descended from the original pagan worshipping Canaanites is similarly false and even if it were true, the Canaanite claim to the land was thrown out of court by Alexander the Great (see above).

 

If the myth of the "Palestinian Nation" with their own distinct culture and heritage was true, ask any "Palestinian" to name their 1st president, their 2nd, 3rd etc. like Americans can name theirs. 

They cannot, because there has never been a "Palestinian president" over a sovereign "Palestinian State". Any "presidents" they can name are not "Palestinian" but rather (Saudi) Arabian, Turkish, Kurdish, Egyptian etc. 

What have the "Palestinian Nation" that has "always existed" contributed to world culture? What world famous music, art, poetry? (except that of hate and terrorism). How many members of the "Palestinian Nation" have won Nobel prizes in history? A total of one! Yasser Arafat in 1994. How many Israelis have won Nobel prizes? Since 1966 there have been thirteen (so far).

 

Just because a lie is repeated ad nauseum, funded by mega-"oil bucks", over global media networks, does not make it true. Wanting to believe a lie also does not make it true.

 

Am Yisrael again repented and after 1878 years of horrendous exile HKB"H had mercy on us, took the land (that belongs to Him), spat out those who were not worthy of it and gave it back to us, His chosen people, to whom He promised the Promised Land – for all eternity (בראשית יג, טו).

 

The other more "modern" monotheistic religions, Christianity and Islam, derived from the Torah, are based on the premise that HKB"H had discarded Am Yisrael and that we are no longer His Chosen People. 

The restoration of the Nation of Israel to their land of Eretz Yisrael and its rebirth, in our time, has proven this premise to be false. These two major religions do not know how to reconcile this and it has cast them into disarray. 

The only way they can deal with this turn of events is to feign ignorance, "reinvent history", ignoring well documented history in the Bible and perpetuating lies and antisemitic hate - hoping that G-d's renewed love for His Chosen People will be a transient blip on the pages of history and even actively working to make that happen, by trying to wipe us out physically (Islam) or spiritually (Christianity).

 

HKB"H has restored Am Yisrael to our land, but this is not unconditional, it depends on us being worthy of being here. To be worthy we have to follow the word of G-d, in the Torah. Part of the nations' battle to eradicate the reborn Am Yisrael is to widen the gap between us and HKB"H by tempting us with their materialism and culture.

 

They will fail. If they actually read the Bible (upon which their religions are based) - that they believe in, they cannot escape the truth.

 

What we are seeing in front of our very eyes today is the emergence of that truth and a dissolution of the lies. The Torah tells us לַשֶּׁקֶר אֵין רַגְלַיִם, lies cannot last forever, they will eventually be exposed for what they are.

 

We, Am Yisrael have a lot of work to do internally, to strengthen our bond with HKB"H and prove that we are worthy to be here. Israel is not a "safe haven" from pogroms (as we clearly saw on October 7). Israel is our destiny, our responsibility to G-d, to ourselves and the rest of the world. 

The longer we try to escape that destiny, the longer we prolong our suffering. HKB"H will carry us to our destiny regardless. We get to decide how we want to arrive – kicking and screaming, or willingly and with joy.

 

We need to urgently work harder on uniting with one another, on loving our fellow Jew, despite his/her faults, on respecting the Kedusha of Eretz Yisrael and on strengthening the bond with our Creator.  

 

We need to turn our eyes upward and inwards for salvation, not westward. 


Our salvation will not come from this president or that, from this European prime minister or that, but rather from trusting our fate to the hands of the only One who can solve all our problems and at the same time making our own concerted, sincere hishtadlut. בבי"א.  

 

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