Who Owns the Land of Israel Today?

Bible Prophecy Today (Link) - Arno Froese (November 5, 2009)

The answer to this question is fiercely debated between the Jews and Arabs who live in Israel and their surrounding neighbor states. It seems as though the entire world gets involved when it comes to the ownership of the land of Israel. It is rather significant that not a single country sides with the territorial boundaries God ordained and preserved in His Word. The deed to the land of Israel clearly states that the Jews are the original and only legitimate owners defined by geographical references. Genesis 15:18 says:

�In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates.�

Notice that this resolution is written in the past tense,

�...have I given this land....�

Of course, the world disregards what the Bible says about this land and its people, so let's look at it from a political perspective. Israel fought five major wars against its Arab neighbors and was victorious each time. But something strange happened; Israel was not allowed to keep the territory it had conquered. Why not? The nations of the world, particularly the United States, have pressured Israel into surrendering areas of the Promised Land to the Arabs, from whom the Jews conquered the land. This is unusual because every country was established by the force of weapons.

For example, Germany lost the war against communism and the rest of the world. As a result, its victors took possession of almost one-third of the country. East Prussia, the part of Germany in which I was born, and where my family's roots date back over 800 years, was divided into Lithuania, Russia and Poland. Why? Because Germany lost the war.

Our own country was established on the basis of force. The Indians lost the battle against the Americans, which settled the land conflict.

All other nations have been able to enjoy the spoils of their victory, but Israel has been denied this right. All of the nations that have conquered territory by force to establish their borders now condemn Israel for taking possession of their own territory. From such a perspective, we can understand God's wrath upon the nations as documented in Joel 3:2, which ends with three accusatory words to the nations: parted my land.