Signs of the Times – Part unknown

Lebanon Fighting Escalates

Whenever one crisis point in the middle East appears to ease a little another quickly takes its place in the news Since the release of the American hostages in Iran little from the country makes the news any more except an occasional item about the power struggle that continues there

The headlines have once again returned to the shores of the Mediterranean where things have been relatively quiet for some time In Lebanon to the north of Israel the conflict that has been going on for years has suddenly escalated into a serious confrontation between Syria and Israel

To counter the Arab supported PLO in Southern Lebanon, Israel has been supplying the Christian militiamen with arms through the port of Juniyah ten miles north of Beirut Israel claims that Syrian peace keeping forces in Lebanon are trying to cut off this aid by seizing the hill tops of the Bekaa Valley which overlooks the port As a warning to Syria, Israel shot down two Syrian helicopters in a four hour period late in April In retaliation Syria for the first time installed Soviet SAM missile batteries on Lebanese soil Israel says this violates a tacit agreement Syria made act to place missiles in Lebanon when the Syrian peace keeping force entered Lebanon in 1976 to end the civil war there As this is written a total of 22 batteries have been installed and Syria has moved new troops close to the arbitrary line Israel has set beyond which Syrian troops will not be allowed to move President Reagan in an effort to calm the situation called from retirement the veteran diplomat Philip Hobib and sent him on a peace mission to the leaders of Lebanon, Syria and Israel As he began his mission a Soviet emissary was in Damascus discussing the possible Israeli-Syrian conflict with Syrian leaders. Saudi Arabia which has been paying most of the “peace keeping” bill for the Syrians in Lebanon has worked hard to urge restraint on the Syrians because there is little doubt that in the event of a full scale conflict Israel would win. The Soviet Union which last year signed a 20-year friendship treaty with Syria, has so far done little to restrain Syria. How far the Soviets are prepared to go in support of their client is not yet clear but to those looking for the prophesied Gogian invasion of the Holy Land these events will certainly be watched with interest. The SAM missile installation is certainly a forward step in the establishment of Soviet presence to the north of Israel, even though it is being done by a surrogate.

West Bank Occupation Pledged To Continue

Even as the Lebanon crisis continued to grow, Israeli Prime-Minister Menachem Begin vowed that none of the occupied Arab territory would be surrendered as long as he serves as head of the government of Israel. In an Israeli Independence Day speech at a West Bank settlement called Ariel. Begin drew a tumultuous ovation from his 35,000 listeners when he said, “I, Menachem Begin, son of Ze’ev and Hassia, pledge that as long as I serve the people of Israel as prime minister we will not give up any portion of Judea and Samaria, Gaza and the Golan Heights.”

Although organized as a non-political 33rd Independence Day event, the speech was clearly part of Begin’s Likud block campaign for re-election. A poll taken recently by the Jerusalem Post showed that about 75 percent of all Israelis support continued settlement activity in the West Bank. These settlements that have been widely criticized by the U.S. and most European nations is one of Begin’s party’s main campaign issues. The cabinet minister in charge of the colonization drive has said there will be a total of 85 Jewish settlements with a population of 20,000 in the West Bank by election day.

Another official vowed the settlement drive was only the start and pledged to build thousands of apartments in the occupied area.

Meanwhile, in the Yamit sector of northern Sinai, some 100,000 people attended a rally opposing the completion of Israel’s phased withdrawal from the occupied Sinai Peninsula. The schedule calls for this to be finished by 1982.

Although Begin was given almost no chance of re-election in February when the cabinet crisis forced him to face a general election, recent polls show him gaining on Labor Party leader Shimon Peres. Although the chance of winning is still only 20 percent, the dramatic improvement is extremely heartening to Begin and he is going forth with renewed vigor and confidence to fight his uphill campaign which he may yet win if the purpose of God for this land is to be furthered by the hard line Likud Party.

To the Moles and To the Bats

In this Olivet prophecy Jesus gave as one of the signs of the fulfilling of the times of the Gentiles, “men fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world.” (Luke 21:26 R.S.V.) And Isaiah predicts that in the day of God’s judgments “men shall enter the caves of the rocks and the holes of the ground.” (Isa. 2:19, R.S.V.)

One has only to look at today’s popular book lists to see the foreboding that fills men’s minds today. Fear of nuclear war, economic collapse or natural disaster are, with the help of the various media, being brought to peoples attention as never before. A feature article in the Valley Daily News recently described a project that shows how some people are preparing to do the very thing that Isaiah predicted.

Among the multi-colored rocks of southwestern Utah a project is reportedly under construction by a company called Survival Tomorrow Inc. for the purpose of providing refuge in the event of any of the aforementioned catastrophies. In the sparsely populated region near La Verkin, Utah a 240 unit condominium is being built entirely underground below 3½ feet of earth and 8 inches of concrete. The complex will be self-contained with water tanks, electric generators, and an air filtration system capable of handling radioactive fallout and the residue of chemical and biologic weapons.

Each unit is to be stocked with a years supply of food for four people, stored for space reasons in specially designed furniture. The location has been carefully chosen on the theory that when law and order break down one should be as far as possible from the teeming metropolis.

The trouble with the old concept of the home cellar stocked with food or the backyard bomb shelter is said to be that in the event of disaster the owner may find himself displaced by desperate marauders whose only thought is personal survival. But this complex, called Ter­rene Ark I by the developer, is said to be far enough from the nearest big city, Las Vegas, 140 miles away, to be safe from any threat of this kind.

To help sell these units, priced at $40,000 to $80,000 depending on size, the promoters emphasize that a unit can serve as a vacation home and at the same time providing personal safety in the event of disaster. Zion National Park’s spectacular scenery is only a few miles away and the weather is warm and dry.

Viewed from the perspective of God’s revealed word any attempt to survive by burrowing like moles in the earth will be illusory. God has promised to protect and save those who seek the salvation that He has offered mankind. The Psalmist expressed his faith in the words, “the Lord is my rock and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.” (Psa. 18:2)

Dead Sea Canal Proposed

Increasing world energy costs have now reached a level that gives Israel the incentive to go ahead with a plan that has long been under consideration — a plan to generate hydroelectric power by means of a canal between the Mediterranean Sea and the lowest point on earth, the Dead Sea, 1290 feet below sea level

Considerations other than energy also are involved The level of the Dead Sea has been falling in recent years due to the diversion of the waters of the Jordan River for agriculture Israel in the 1950 s began the development of the rich agriculture of the Negev using Jordan River water To the east of Israel the Kingdom of Jordan is now working on a water project which by 1983 will divert much of the flow of the Yarmuk, a major tributary of the Jordan River The falling level of the Dead Sea is having an adverse effect on the operation of chemical plants in both Israel and Jordan that extract valuable chemicals from the briny waters

Last year a task force headed by the noted physicist Yuval Ne eman issued a report showing that the $700 million project would pay for itself in less than 30 years The proposed canal would run approximately 70 miles from Deir el Balah in the Gaza Strip, southeasterly to the vicinity of Beersheba and then northeasterly to the Dead Sea in the vicinity of Masada

The idea of such a canal is not new It was advocated by British colonialists in the 19th century to protect the Suez Canal against a land invasion from the north However, due to modern warfare methods this is no longer a consideration Theodore Herzl, founder of the Zionist movement saw the hydroelectric potential of such a canal important for the development of the Jewish state. This was before cheap and abundant oil temporarily made the economics unfavorable.

Notwithstanding the benefits of the project and the Israeli government’s desire to proceed, political problems are certain to delay the start of construction. Since the eastern half of the Dead Sea is in Jordan the agreement of that nation will be necessary for the project to proceed. Jordan has expressed concern about the effect of the Mediterranean water on the chemistry of the Dead Sea. Egypt also is in contention with Israel over the Gaza Strip in which a portion of the route is located. Resolution of Israel’s economic and political crisis is also important for the raising of the necessary capital for the project. A reasonable degree of peace and security for Israel is also seen as a desirable prerequisite.

Healing of the Waters

The progress of this proposal will be interesting to watch with Bible prophecy in mind. The Scriptures describe a scheme similar in many ways yet with important differences. Ezekiel chapter 47 and Zechariah 14:8 tell of a fresh water river flowing from the Temple in Jerusalem to the Eastern sea. Zechariah tells of a flow toward the Mediterranean as well. The flow described by Ezekiel quite miraculously increases in volume as it flows and when it reaches the Dead Sea the waters which today are a nearly saturated solution of salt are made fresh by the freshwater flow and support an abundance of life. The swamps and marshes however are to remain salt.

Although there is much symbolism contained in this prophecy as Revelation, chapter 22 brings out, a literal meaning also is intended as is the case with the Temple that Ezekiel describes in chapters 40 through 46. In the symbolic sense the fresh water river represents the word of the Aionian Gospel going forth from the throne of Christ in Jerusalem and bringing about the spiritual and moral healing of the sea of humanity. That the prophetic river is fresh water in contrast to the salt water of the proposed canal may be seen as symbolic of the eternal versus the temporal. Fresh water can flow into a freshwater lake forever without changing it in any way. Salt water on the other hand will eventually choke the lake. A rough calculation shows that if the flow of the Jordan River, given by the encyclopedia as 6 million tons of water per day, were ocean water instead of fresh the inflow of salt would be over 140 thousand tons per day! In a few centuries this steady build up would cause the lake to become a huge bed of salt instead of the habitat for life that God’s word promises for the millennial age after the waters are miraculously cured. So we have another example of the wisdom of the Holy Word, recorded in an age when physical and chemical principles were little understood, showing a remarkable consistency with these principles.

A New Foreign Policy

Although domestic economic matters have been the main concerns during the first few weeks of the Reagan administration, a new trend appears to be developing in the area of foreign policy. The isolationism that gripped the nation in the years following the Vietnam War appears to be in the process of being reversed. Despite drastic cuts in the proposed national budget, sharply increased military spending is being sought. Understandably, opposition to draft registration expressed by the candidate during the campaign appears to have been dropped.

Military advisers are being sent to El Salvador to help the government use its military aid in the war with communist backed rebels. This is alarming to many Americans who recall the beginning of the involvement in Vietnam. State Department spokesmen are voicing strong accusations against the Soviet Union for aiding international terrorists and arming subversive groups. El Salvador appears to have been picked as the place to confront the communist threat, possibly because of the good chance of success in view of the fact that government forces have already defeated a communist offensive.

In a recent interview on television the U.S. Secretary of Defense stated that the U.S. will try to get military bases in the Middle East to deter the Soviet Union from any attempt to seize the oil fields. The next day a Deputy Secretary amplified this with specific details. He said that a high priority of the Reagan Nonadministrative will be a massive build up of military forces there to protect the Persian Gulf. These would be prepared for actual combat with the Soviets if oil supplies should be threatened.

The Arab nations including Egypt have so far been reluctant to have U.S. bases on their soil but Israel has stated several times that one would be welcome there. The U.S. so far has not responded to this offer.

A Soft Answer from the Soviets

At the time of this writing the response of the Soviets has been surprisingly moderate. President Leonid Brezhnev called for a summit meeting with President Reagan and a reopening of negotiations on arms control. The strategy seems to be designed to make the Soviets appear to the world as reasonable and peaceful in contrast to a rough and strident U.S. administration. The call for a summit meeting is seen by some as a ploy to take world attention off the various Soviet adventures around the world.

An agreement on arms control is no doubt sincerely desired by both sides be­cause of the tremendous economic burden imposed by an arms race. But when all these things are viewed in the light of God’s revealed prophetic word, the 3rd chapter of Joel seems appropriate as the nations continue to beat their plowshares into swords and are drawn as if by a magnet to that part of the world where God has declared He will sit in judgment upon them.

Energy Needs Threaten Peace

While the captivity of the U S embassy hostages in Iran gets the headlines and stirs up the public anger, a much more serious hostage situation has developed in the form of dependence on an energy supply that is vulnerable to terrorism, accident, warfare and extortion The tremendous importance of energy in the economy of the industrial nations makes the Persian Gulf supplies of crucial importance to the security of the western world It is the opinion of experts that production from this area in the future will never be greater than it is now and prices will continue to rise, leading not only to economic hardship in the industrial nations but political instability in the developing nations as growth is slowed

The Soviet Union is thought by some analysts to face equally grave energy problems At present the Soviets supply Eastern Europe and export some oil to the west to obtain hard currency But the CIA believes that petroleum production has peaked and is beginning a slow decline If this is true the Kremlin will face some hard choices One might be to spend some of the money now going to military growth to increase energy development But this is thought to be a choice the leaders are reluctant to make as they remember the devastation of World War II which they feel was a result of their unpreparedness

The growing Soviet military strength in relation to the U S and other western nations is expected to peak in the next two or three years — before the proposed U S build up can close the gap Some experts fear the Kremlin might risk a confrontation at this time while the ‘West is weak to secure access to the Persian Gulf oil either by a direct southward thrust or by aiding revolutionary takeovers in the area A perception of the growing weakness of the West in relation to Russia has prompted the U.S. and NATO to pledge an increase in military spending to modernize their weapons. So far neither side wants a direct confrontation, but if one should occur by miscalculation experts believe an escalation, to a nuclear war would be a distinct probability due to the weakness of the conventional forces of the Western allies.

Afghanistan a Year Later

The Soviet invasion of Afganistan has been going on now for over a year with no sign of an end to the conflict. Although the Muslim rebel forces have been prevented from controlling the government, the insurgents continue to battle Soviet forces. The Soviets, who have given up all pretense that it is an Afghan civil war, have 85,000 troops in the coun­try and 30,000 more just across the border. Equipment includes more than 2,000 tanks, 3,000 armored vehicles and 300 combat aircraft including six squadrons of Mi-24 helicopter gunships. These forces control the cities but the Muslim insurgents dominate the rugged countryside. It has been estimated by experts that to completely control the country several times the present commitment of troops would be needed. This the Soviets have not yet deemed necessary, settling rather for a smaller scale but inconclusive war.

Some analysts believe the Soviets underestimated the strong reaction of world opinion to this venture. The U.S. grain embargo and the Olympic games boycott had an adverse effect on a Soviet economy already having its problems. Many of the Third World countries were disillusioned and the U.N. condemned the action. To avoid the criticism leveled by some that the Western nations had not given sufficient advance indication of their reaction, the recent threat of a Soviet invasion of Poland was met with strong protests and warnings from the U.S. and European countries. This appears to have had an effect in restraining the Soviets, at least for the present.

Growth of Religious Power

On the domestic American scene, an interesting trend recently has been the growth in power of the religious political movement. Led by evangelical television and radio preachers these right wing oriented groups have in effect gotten away from the biblical concept that God rules in the kingdoms of men by direct divine intervention. They feel rather that the power of the ballot box must be used to protect God from the liberal elements in society.

A strong national defense is advocated to preserve the “Christian” way of life in this country against “godless communism”. In the November elections claims were made that it was the influence of the “Moral Majority” that led to the defeat of such well known candidates as George McGovern and Frank Church. A difference of opinion exists as to how much influence this movement had in the Republican presidential victory but its proponents are making a bid for the incorporation of its aims into the policies of the new administration.

Another illustration of the power of organized religion was seen last year when the Attorney General of the State of California attempted to examine the finances of several churches suspected of fraud. A massive lobbying effort employing some of the highest priced legal talent in the country was launched in the state legislature. The result was the passing of a law exempting religious organizations from the type of scrutiny other tax exempt organizations must bear.

Religious Sound

Politics, however, is not the only field where religion has been active lately. Commercial radio has been turning to what the industry calls religious sound. In the Southern California area there are now some 14 stations broadcasting full-time or part-time religious programming. One of the larger ones is station KPRZ at 1150 on the AM dial. About a year ago this station changed from its mellow rock format and its KIIS-AM call letters to a program of roughly 55 percent evangelism and Bible readings, 40 percent music and 5 percent news, sports and weather.

The financial fortunes of the station which were sagging before the change are reported to have turned around under the new format. The broadcast material is targeted to the evangelical, “born again” market but the station still has non-religious advertisers such as Ford, Holiday Health Spas, Farmer John and 7-Up. After all even religious people drive cars, exercise, eat and drink. The age of the listening audience is said to be seventy four percent between 18 and 49 with 20 percent above 50, and percent below 18.

Religious Jewelry Becoming Popular

Another industry said to be exploiting the religious market is the jewelry business. A few years ago the only jewelry of a religious nature to be seen were crosses, crucifixes and maybe a few religious medals. Religious faith used to be considered something of a private affair and not something to be displayed around the neck or on the lapel. Customs have changed and today a growing number of religious partisans are wearing their professions of faith in the form of silver and gold jewelry that carries a religious sentiment or slogan. It is called “witness” jewelry and has come to popularity as a response to the emotion-laden charismatic Christian movement and the sloganeering of television evangelists.

Some 200 manufacturers are said to be involved. “The trend today is toward quality and taste”, a manufacturer is quoted in a trade article. Tiffany & Co., for example, has issued a $50, 14-karat gold pendant bearing the injunction “Try God.” “Jesus Saves” pen and pencil sets priced at $30 are sold on television. All of this shows that little has changed since Jesus expressed his concern for the commercialization in the Temple at Jerusalem. The fears of Demetrius the Silversmith that his graft was endangered by Christianity appears to have been unfounded.

Political change in the U.S.

Now that a new president has been chosen by the people of the United States much is being written in the press about what change in policy will be made by the new administration when it takes office in January. The magnitude of the victory by the Republican party, not only in the presidential race but in the congress as well, is seen as a mandate from the electorate to implement the campaign promises of the party.

One area of particular interest to students of Bible prophecy is United States policy in regard to Israel and the Middle East. During the campaign both candidates pledged support for Israel. The Camp David accord and the subsequent progress toward peace between Egypt and Israel was considered one of the foreign policy triumphs of the Carter administration even though the Jewish community was not entirely satisfied with the Carter position. Although the summit conference that was planned for the fall has now been postponed, Prime Minister Me­nachem Begin of Israel has expressed a desire to meet with President-Elect Reagan as soon as possible. He has also proposed that the relationship of Israel to the United States be changed from the status of a charity case to that of a useful ally in the maintenance of peace in the middle east. He has suggested the establishment by the U.S. of a base for its Rapid Development Forces on Israeli territory. Inasmuch as Reagan will not become president until January, he has rejected as inappropriate an official meeting before then but unofficial contacts may take place.

The new administration is expected to continue to back Israel and oppose the PLO as long as it refuses to recognize Israel. It is significant that President-Elect Reagan has characterized the PLO as a terrorist organization — a term which leaders of that group have strongly objected to. The position of the new administration therefore appears to remain strongly in Israel’s favor.

Linkage

Another change of policy that the President-Elect is expected to make is in arms negotiations with the Soviet Union. The Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT II) that the Carter administration concluded but was not able to get the Senate to ratify will be either dropped or renegotiated to make it more acceptable to the legislators. In dealing with the Soviets, Reagan has made it plain that in negotiating treaties of this kind, his administration will consider together the full range of issues between the two nations rather than taking each issue separately.

This policy called linkage has been objected to by the Soviets and will probably make agreements harder to obtain. The new administration is expected to ask for more money to spend on weapons in an effort to ensure equality with the Soviet Union. The Soviet leaders have warned that they will not accept U.S. military superiority, so an enormously expensive arms race may be ahead unless an accommodation is reached.

War Impasse

The war between Iraq and Iran which military experts at first thought would be over quickly has instead almost reached a stalemate. An immediate result of the fighting has been diversion of some Arab attention away from Israel along with a shattering of the always fragile Arab Unity. Religious and ethnic differences among the Arab states has caused them to take sides in the war although little actual involvement has yet occurred.

Jordan’s King Hussein has come out openly on the side of Iraq, offering to send troops if called upon and providing an overland route for supplies from the Gulf of Aqaba. Libya and Syria have taken the side of Iran with Libya’s Col. Muammar Kaddafi declaring that support for the Ayatollah Khomeini is a matter of Islamic duty. Syria accused Iraq of trying to dominate the Persian Gulf, and the Saudis are backing Jordan against Iran out of fear of the spread of the Islamic revolution. For the United States the fear is that a widening of the conflict could endanger western oil supplies. Although both the U.S. and the Soviet Union have declared neutrality in the conflict, Soviet food and supplies have been moving through Jordan to Iraq. The strategy of the U.S. has been to help strengthen the defenses of Saudi Arabia and the other conservative oil states whose oil production has been increased to take the place of lost output from Iraq and Iran. The United States has little direct influence on the two warring nations as both denounce Washington in equally strong terms.

It would seem that the Soviet Union because of its stronger links to both Iraq and Iran may be better able to get an advantage whoever wins on the battlefield. However some observers feel that the Soviets may lose ground if the conflict drags on. They reason that it will become increasingly difficult for Moscow to stay on good terms with both sides and may suffer a diplomatic disaster similar to that which they experienced in the Horn of Africa where they tried to remain friends with both Ethiopia and Somalia. Eventually the Russians were expelled from Somalia where the U.S. has now obtained a base for its Rapid Deployment Force. The Russians are no more popular in the Persian Gulf area than the U.S. because the highly religious Islamic culture of the rich oil states is strongly anti-communist. The U.S. has little influence with the Arabs because U.S. policy on the Palestinian issue is not to their liking. So both the U.S. and the USSR find themselves standing by with little influence on the combatants while a very dangerous war grinds on. Observers feel that when the fighting is over either the U.S. or the Soviets will be stronger in the region but which way it will be is not predictable at this time. Direct military intervention by the Soviets is considered unlikely at this time because of their preoccupation in Afganistan as well as the desire to avoid a direct confrontation with the United States.

Soviet Treaty with Syria

Of important significance to Israel is a twenty-year friendship treaty that Syria’s President Assad has signed with the So­viet Union. Although negotiations were begun months before the war between Iran and Iraq, the signing of it may have been hastened by the hostilities. Israel’s Prime Minister Begin predicts Syria will now assume the position that Egypt once held in relation to the Soviet Union. He expects there will be an influx of Soviet advisers, Soviet ships and Soviet weapons into Syria.

Although the treaty does not commit the Soviet Union to come to Syria’s defense, Begin claims there are secret defense clauses that have not been made public. Even as Israel sees this serious threat developing on its northern border, bills are being introduced in the Israeli Parliament to make the Golan Heights a permanent part of Israel. This territory taken from Syria in the 1967 war, is con­sidered vital for Israel’s defense. Al-though Prime Minister Begin has made a public disavowal of personal involvement in such a move, he is known to favor it. If the annexation does take place cries of condemnation are sure to be heard from all parts of the international community, a reaction to which Israel’s Knesset has become accustomed and so far has defied with impunity.

When the Israeli Knesset on July 30 voted 69 to 15 to declare Jerusalem the capital of the Jewish state and all of the city, including the Arab portion, a permanent part of Israel it was to the Arabs like a waving a red flag before a bull The Saudis and the Libyans threatened to curtail oil production President Assad of Syria responded favorably to a suggestion by Col Khadify of Libya that the two na­tions merge for the purpose of opposing Israel militarily Although the PLO has for more than a year been trying to pre­sent a moderate image to gain support in Europe, Yasir Arafat has indicated he intends — at least for the moment — to put more emphasis on fighting rather than talking

Although the action by the Knesset was meaningless except as a confirmation of what was already a fact, the bill was pass­ed more as an act of defiance against the United Nations General Assembly which had two days earlier passed a one-sided resolution calling for a Palestinian state and warning Israel to withdraw to pre-1967 borders or face economic sanctions The U N resolution was one-sided in that it failed to acknowledge Israel s right to exist within secure boundaries

Following the Jerusalem declaration the U N security council met and voted unanimously except for a U S abstention to censure Israel for its decision Many countries who had embassies at Jerusalem began removing them to other locations as a sign of protest against Israel Well may one wonder how Israel, a nation of 3 5 million, can make these outrageous moves and survive the opposition of nearly the whole world To the believer in God s Word it is but a further evidence of God s overruling hand in the affairs of nations as He works out His will with His land and people It is but the latest in the series of miracles that have taken place as the dry bones of Ezekiel 37 are assembling according to plan.

Pressure

A very important event for Israel and the middle east is the U.S. presidential election. The candidates feel the pressure of the large U.S. Jewish population and compete for its vote. As the campaign got under way Ronald Reagan attempted to make political hay by condemning the U.S. abstention in the U.N. vote for censure. President Carter however gets a boost by getting Egypt and Israel to agree to resume the suspended Palestinean autonomy talks. The Palestinian autonomy question is one of the points in the 1978 Camp David accord on which agreement was to have been reached by May 1980 according to the original time table but the talks broke down when agreement could not be reached on the type and extent of autonomy to be granted the 1.2 million Palestinians living in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

The new talks will not only address this question but will prepare the way for another Camp David style summit after the November elections. It was reported in Washington that Israel made three concessions as a gesture to restart the talks — the release of some Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli prisons, a delay in Begin moving his offices to annexed Arab Jerusalem and a “clarification” on Israel’s policy of building new settlements. The resumption of talks appears to represent a compromise on both sides with Egypt stressing the concession it won, namely, Israel’s consent to a new Camp David style summit to address the question of Arab East Jerusalem and Israel’s policy of building Jewish settlements in occupied Arab land. Although for the time being relations between Egypt and Israel seem to be stable, both countries face serious internal and external problems.

A Miraculous Survival

A minor miracle in itself has been the political survival of President Anwar Sa­dat of Egypt. In virtual isolation from the rest of the Arab world since his recognition of Israel in 1977, the recent U.N. actions have only increased the isolation.

Inside Egypt the Islamic fundamentalists have demonstrated their anger at Sa­dat’s having given sanctuary to the late former Shah of Iran. Egypt’s poverty is another source of dissatisfaction. Sadat had sold the Camp David treaty to his people partly with the argument that an economic miracle would ensue. Although peace with Israel has brought a flood of revenue from the Suez Canal and the Sinai oil fields, it takes time for improved economic conditions to translate into better living standards for the people. Per capita income is said to be a mere $369 and the inflation rate over 30 per cent. The Egyptian military is unhappy that the U.S. has sold Egypt only one-fifth the arms they asked for. Sadat however, unlike the late Shah, remains popular with the masses of the people and with skillful political maneuvering and stern security measures has managed to keep organized opposition divided and defensive. Although he has suffered two mild heart attacks he maintains his health by a strict regimen of diet, exercise and rest. If Sadat can show some success in the upcoming summit talks his chances for political survival will be excellent. He’ll be looking to U.S. pressure on Israel for help.

Assuring Survival

Meanwhile Israel, in moves to keep the PLO off balance has been increasing its raids into southern Lebanon. In the last week of July 500 Israeli troops backed by heavy artillery fire and helicopters attacked Palestinian guerrillas in the most massive Israeli raid since 1978. The importance is indicated by the fact that Prime Minister Begin followed the operation from a command bunker near the border while a few miles away Yasir Arafat the leader of the PLO helped plot the guerrilla defense. The object of the raid was to dislodge guerrillas from eighteen sites including the twelfth-century Beaufort Castle.

After several hours of fighting in which buildings used as staging areas were dynamited and mortar emplacements destroyed, the Israelis responded with two air strikes by U.S. Phantom jets when the PLO fired rockets at the Israeli town of Metulla. Later Begin expressed the Israeli intentions toward the PLO. “We shall not wait for the terrorists to come to our houses,” he said. “We shall stun them until we have exterminated them and until Israel’s survival is assured, forever.” The survival of Israel has been assured by a power with far greater resources than the supplier of the guns, rockets and Phantom jets with which the spiritually blind Israel seeks assurance. The divine word proclaimed by Ezekiel promised a time when God will take the children of Israel from among the nations and bring them into their own land and make them one nation upon the mountains of Israel. (Ezek. 37:19-22).

Not only is Israel, promised survival but Jerusalem the city that the Knesset has proclaimed the capital of Israel shall indeed be the capital of the world. Jeremiah prophesied, “At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord, and all nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jeru­salem.” (Jer. 3:17) The people also who are now isolated and threatened by the whole world will one day be honored and sought out by all nations of the world as Zechariah prophesied, “In those days it shall come to pass that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, “We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.” (Zech. 8:23)