Commentary: Living in a Topsy-Turvy World
JERUSALEM, Israel -- Israelis on all sides of the political spectrum -- right, left and in between -- know the Jewish state rarely gets a fair shake in the media, which more often than not shapes people's thinking.
From terror attacks to the Israeli-Arab conflict, the majority of major media outlets worldwide manages to find some angle that faults Israel. That often requires more effort than letting the facts speak for themselves.
But it's not just Israel.
Calling good evil and evil good is a phenomenon rooted in the fallen nature of man. According to the Bible, it began with the first two human beings God created and has kept going. It can be found in every culture and people and runs counter to God's heart for His creation.
Judaism is founded on biblical principles. That's why the Jewish people are often called "the people of the Book." Israelis, like everyone else, are a work in progress.
Still, living in what Middle East analyst Joel Rosenberg calls the "epicenter of the world" provides a front-row seat to the unfolding of God's plan.
It would be easy for the average Israeli to get discouraged with the daily headlines. But that's a luxury the people of Israel can't afford.
The regathering of the Jewish people from every nation where they were banished is increasingly evident today. Following the latest terror attacks in Paris, French Jews are expected to immigrate to Israel in droves.
That is God's plan, foretold in many places in scripture, and it won't be thwarted.
But few Israelis would say it's easy to watch the nations of the world, theoretically represented by the United Nations, unendingly condemn Israel while ignoring gross human rights violations in the Middle East, Africa, China, Russia, and elsewhere.
The prophet Isaiah warns, "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight." ( )
It's been said God is allowing evil to come into its fullest so He can deal with it once and for all.
Those who seek to understand today's events through a biblical lens can take heart. God does have a plan for His creation. It's a good plan, and He will fulfill everything He has purposed for Israel and the whole world.
The challenge is to trust Him implicitly. The place to nourish that trust is found in His Word.
"If it had not been the Lord who was on our side," let Israel now say -- "If it had not been the Lord who was on our side when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, when their wrath was kindled against us. Then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul. Then the swollen waters would have gone over our soul.
Blessed be the Lord who has not given us as prey to their teeth. Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers. The snare is broken, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth." (Psalm 124)
