1S7-16: The Six Day War Is Evidence That God’s Promise To Abraham Still Holds True

“The cities between ‘Ekron and Gat which the P’lishtim had captured from Israel were restored to Israel, and Isra’el rescued all this territory from the power of the P’lishtim. There was also peace between Israel and the Emori.”-1 Samuel 7:14

So we’re told that God’s victory at Mitzpah was so effective that Israel even won back land that had been lost hundreds of years earlier.

The territory of Ekron and Gat was originally assigned to the tribes of Dan and Judah.

But they were never able to succeed in conquering these Philistine strongholds.

It would take this new war at Mitzpah to get that land properly back into Hebrew hands.

You know what this reminds me of?

Israel’s 6 day war with Egypt in 1967.

In many ways, this war was kind of similar to the events related here in 1 Samuel 7.

Israel was minding her own business when Egyptian forces joined by Syria and Jordan began gathering in the Sinai to prepare for an attack against God’s people.

Five Egyptian divisions of ground troops and two divisions of armor were on standby ready to roll into Israel.

Hundreds of tanks stood ready opposite Eilat, prepared to topple the Negev.

The Jordanian army had placed thousands of soldiers and hundreds of tanks in the West Bank and along Israel’s eastern border.

Reinforcements from Iraq were at the ready.

On the northern border, Syrian soldiers on the Golan Heights had dug in for a long fight.

It seemed like Israel was toast.

And many Israelis had already prepared for a massive slaughter.

They had prepared hospitals and designated whole national parks as cemeteries for the anticipated casualties.

A spirit of despair had taken over the nation.

However, the attack never happened.

Before the Arab nations could strike, Israel launched a surprise airstrike against Egyptian airfields.

The result?

The Israeli Air Force destroyed six Egyptian airfields and hundreds of Egyptians planes.

Or to put it another way, in a single day, Israel destroyed the Egyptian and Syrian Air Forces!!!

The Egyptian Air Force never even had a chance to leave the ground!!!

But that’s not the best part.

During the war, Israeli troops entered East Jerusalem and ultimately gained control over the entire city.

This included the Western Wall, a holy site for Judaism, which had been under Jordanian control since the 1948 Arab-Israeli.

BARUK HASHEM BABY!!!

Israel’s capture of Jerusalem was a deeply significant event.

It marked the first time in nearly 2,000 years the entire city of Jerusalem was under Jewish control.

Afterwards, Israel annexed East Jerusalem and declared the unified city its capital…

A move that has been internationally contested and remains a contentious issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The takeaway here is clear.

Attack an innocent Israel who is simply minding their own business and you’ll end up in a worse state had you not attacked in the first place.

Adonai’s promise to Abraham still holds:

“I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
-Genesis 12:3

And I’m also inspired to share this verse with you:

“All the peoples of the earth
shall see that you are called
by the name of the LORD,
and they shall be afraid of you”
-Deuteronomy 28:10

See you all next time.

P.S. Although the majority of Israeli citizens spoke pessimistically of a looming second Holocaust during the 6 day war, there was a remnant of holy men and a few rabbis who predicted a miraculous salvation. The Lubavitcher Rebbe, for example, predicted God’s intervention and a great victory.

P.P.S. For the sake of thoroughness, I should let you know there is disagreement among scholars whether Ekron and Gat mentioned in verse 14 (copied above) merely marked the outer boundaries of the land Israel recaptured and so Israel re-settled in the territory in between; or if those two cities were included in what Israel ended up re-inhabiting.  Apparently, there are strong arguments for both positions.  

P.P.P.S. The photo above are IDF paratroopers at Jerusalem’s Western Wall shortly after its capture.  The soldiers in the foreground from left to right are Zion Karasenti, Yitzhak Yifat, and Haim Oshri.  May their families be blessed.  And I was so honored to be able to say a prayer at the wall about 5 years ago.