Psalm 83’s Prophetic Insight: Joel Rosenberg on Its Parallel to the Israel-Gaza Conflict

Psalm 83's Prophetic Insight: Joel Rosenberg on Its Parallel to the Israel-Gaza Conflict

Joel Rosenberg, a well-known writer on the Middle East, has sparked conversation with an interesting take: he says a Bible passage written thousands of years ago, Psalm 83, is like reading today’s news about the conflict between Israel and Gaza. He believes this shows the Bible still has important things to say about modern problems.

Psalm 83 talks about a group of nations that didn’t like Israel very much, wanting to wipe it off the map. Rosenberg points out that the places mentioned in the Psalm can be linked to areas around Israel today, like Jordan, Arabia, Lebanon, Syria, and the Gaza Strip. He sees this as a sign that the tensions we see in the news aren’t new; they’ve been around for a very long time.

He highlights that groups like Hamas, which controls Gaza, have said things that sound a lot like what the Psalm talks about – wanting to end the state of Israel. But Rosenberg also notes that not everyone in Gaza supports Hamas or their views, showing the situation is complicated.

What’s really interesting is that, even though the Psalm talks about defeating these enemies, it also hopes they will change their ways and find peace with Israel. Rosenberg thinks this is how people today should pray and hope for the future: not just for safety for Israel, but also that those who are against it might change their minds and hearts.

He encourages everyone to pray for both Israel and the people of Gaza, hoping for a future where there’s less hate and more understanding. Rosenberg’s message is about looking at ancient texts to find wisdom and guidance for today’s world, especially when it comes to hoping and praying for peace.