Book Description
From the Back Cover November 1917: as Allied forces swept into Palestine, the British War Cabinet issued the Balfour Declaration which promised to facilitate the establishment of a Jewish homeland. Imbued with a sense of superiority and supremely confident, Britain administered an Empire that extended across the seven seas. September 1939: on the eve of WW2, Britain treacherously abandoned the Balfour Declaration in an act of appeasement towards Arab nationalism, and severed the Jews' main escape route from the Holocaust. May 1948: Britain was forced into a humiliating withdrawal from Palestine. While Israel prepared for independence the British Empire, economically ruined by the cost of victory in WW2, began a spectacular collapse. How did the Balfour Declaration come about? Why did Britain renege on her commitments to the Jews? What were the dreadful consequences of this betrayal? Why did the British Empire crumble so spectacularly? David Gibson examines these questions in light of a conviction that the restoration of Israel is the fulfilment of Prophetic Scripture. He offers a compelling fresh perspective on historical narratives that have been twisted by those who seek to undermine Israel's right to exist. Product Description: Jerusalem, the eternal city, has always held a mystical significance for Jews which is mournfully expressed in the lamenting of the exiles in Babylon (Psalm 137:1-6). Jerusalem is the "heartbeat" of God's ancient people, no matter where in the world they reside. Jewish history and destiny are irrevocably and forever interwoven with those of Jerusalem. For nearly two millennia, the Jews scattered amongst the nations were praying that God would bring about their return to Zion at a time of his choosing. But the idea was little more than a pious aspiration until late in the 19th Century when, in mainland Europe, such nationalist ideals began gaining momentum. In parallel with this rising tide of Zionism amongst European Jews, British Evangelical churches were at the forefront of a movement that took seriously prophetic scriptures that told of the restoration of Israel and were praying ardently for their fulfilment. The influences of this movement were deeply rooted in British political circles at the very moment that Allied forces under the command of General Allenby were sweeping through Palestine during WW1. And so the destinies of Britain and Israel became intertwined in the providence of God during the birth pangs of modern Zionism. The British Christian Zionist movement was kindling the fire of modern Jewish Zionism just as Britain was on the cusp of taking control of Palestine. On 2 November 1917, the Balfour declaration was issued by the British government, promising support for the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. The declaration was subsequently incorporated into a Mandate for British rule in Palestine after WW1. On 14 May 1948, as the leaders of the Jewish community in Palestine gathered together in Tel Aviv to declare the rebirth of the State of Israel, the British were forced into an ignominious withdrawal, accused of betraying the Jews by an act of political appeasement that had sealed the fate of hundreds of thousands of Jews by severing their only escape route from the horror unfolding in Europe. In an act of ruthlessly calculated political expediency on the eve of WW2, Britain callously broke faith with the promises made in the Balfour Declaration in order to mitigate the risk of the Arabs uniting with Nazi Germany, knowing that the price of this appeasement would be paid by the blood of the Jews. Jews and their supporters believed that the re-creation of the Jewish State in her ancient homeland was nothing short of a God ordained miracle, the fulfilment of Ezekiel's evocative vision of the valley of dry bones reforming into a vast living army (Ezekiel 37:1-14). So how would God judge Britain for her perfidious and morally bankrupt conduct?