Biblical Israel
By Hal Lindsey
The Israel we see today is biblical Israel. Some would say that can’t be true because the people of that nation do not generally live as the Old Testament commands. But when did the people of Israel ever live up to the law of Moses? History shows that the Jews in Israel today descend from the Jews in Israel 2,000 years ago. God placed the proof in their DNA.
Do you know what that means? It means the Bible is true and you can trust every word. The Jewish people remaining distinct and regathering in Israel is one of the greatest of all biblical miracles. And it is taking place right now before our very eyes.
There were many dispersions of the Israelites from their homeland. Those dispersals culminated with Rome sacking Jerusalem and destroying the temple in 70 AD. The Children of Israel were dispersed around the globe. This is called the diaspora. They were physically and economically assimilated into cultures the world over, and yet, miraculously, they remained a distinct people.
And their DNA proves it! Michael Hammer of the Arizona Research Laboratories at the University of Arizona summarized the results of his major study of the DNA of Jews from various places in the world. “Despite their long-term residence in different countries and isolation from one another, most Jewish populations were not significantly different from one another at the genetic level. The results support the hypothesis that the paternal gene pools of Jewish communities from Europe, North Africa and the Middle East descended from a common Middle Eastern ancestral population, and suggest that most Jewish communities have remained relatively isolated from neighboring non-Jewish communities during and after the Diaspora.”
That was in 2001. His results have been confirmed several times since. A 2013 study released in the peer-reviewed, scientific journal Nature concludes, “These results… trace the origins of most Jewish Diaspora communities to the Levant.” The “Levant” means the area bordering the Eastern Mediterranean — in other words, the area of Israel.
In all of history there is no other story like this one. These people were exiled from their land. They met harassment and persecution everywhere they went. On more than one occasion, they faced attempts at genocide. Every human instinct would be to hide within the surrounding culture by removing all distinctions. They didn’t do that. They kept their faith traditions and they married within their faith community.
The people of this small nation were dispersed and spread around the world two thousand years ago. They are not a race, but to this day, they remain a distinct people with genetic markers placing their ancestors in the area of ancient Judea. It is nothing less than breathtaking. But here’s the kicker. Three thousand years ago, God said it would happen! (For example, see Ezekiel 36 and 37. Notice that Israel is to be regathered before their spiritual renewal.)
Since the establishment of modern Israel in 1948, a significant portion of the world has made the destruction of this tiny nation, their great priority — including several immensely wealthy oil-producing nations. But with all that money and the power that goes with it, they haven’t removed little Israel. It is a miracle as potent in its own way as the parting of the Red Sea. It is a sign to the nations that God keeps His word, and that nothing can stand in the way of that.
In Matthew 24:35 (NKJV), Jesus put it this way. “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.”
The ongoing existence of Israel and the Jewish people prove it!
