“But I come against you in the name of the Lord of Hosts (Elohe Tzevaot), the God of the ranks of Yisrael, whom you have defied. This very day Hashem will deliver you into my hands. The battle belongs to Hashem” (The LORD.) (I Sam. 17:45, 47 TNIB)
How Palestine came into existence
The word “Palestine” is thought to be derived from the Philistines who once ruled this region. When Rome crushed a Jewish revolt in 132 CE, the area of Judea was renamed Palestina to minimize Jewish identification with the land of Israel. The Israelites arrived in Canaan in approximately 1400 B.C.E. or over 1,000 years before it was known as Palestina.
The original Philistines for whom the land was named
The original Philistines, for whom the land of Palestine was named, were a civilization known for being voyagers who migrated to the Holy Land in the twelfth century BCE. They were not Arab. They were of Greek origin. They built five city-states: Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gath and Ekron. The current Palestinian people are not related to the original inhabitants of Gaza or what is called, Palestine. They have no long-standing historical claim to the lands of Israel.
The time in which the Arabs began to dwell in Palestine.
The Arab inhabitation of Palestine took place during the Ottoman invasion and occupation that started in 1516 CE. This means the presence of the Jewish people in the land of Israel preceded the arrival of the Arab inhabitants by about 3,000 years. The idea that Israelis are occupiers of the lands belonging to the Palestinian people is not supported by history. The Israeli people are not occupiers of the lands of the Palestinian people. They were given this land by God (Hashem) and are the rightful owners of this land. Even when the Jews were exiled from Israel, a portion of the Jewish population remained in Israel. Jerusalem has been the continuous spiritual, religious, and national center for the Jewish people for over 3,000 years.
The Great Battle between the Philistines and Israel
There have been other battles involving Israel and what we call the Gaza Strip. The prophet Samuel describes a battle with this region under King Saul. I Samuel chapter 17 reports that the armies of the Philistines gathered for battle against King Saul, (I Sam. 17:1-2). They sent out a giant warrior named Goliath to intimidate the army of King Saul. He stood about nine feet tall. He challenged Israel to send out their best warrior to fight him. He came out daily for 40 days to defy and challenge the army of Israel, (vs-10,16). Goliath was their strongman and the face of their armies. According to the tradition of the time, the winner of such a fight between Goliath and the Israeli warrior would win the war. The loser’s army would become servants to the winner’s army.
David, the shepherd boy, arrived on the scene as Goliath was coming out one morning to issue his challenge to fight Israel’s best fighter. His thunderous voice intimidated the army of King Saul, (vs-23). David took offense with this defiance of the army of Israel and considered that Goliath was defying the God of Israel, (vs-26). David responded with these words, “Is there not a cause?” All armies fight with a cause. There is a purpose for fighting an enemy. In this case, the cause was to vindicate God and preserve the nation of Israel. David was rebuking the Israeli army for being afraid of this giant with his question. David told King Saul that he would face the giant and fight him on behalf of Israel, (vs-32). David was only a youth and not dressed in the armor of a warrior, so it was hard to take him seriously, (vs-33). The king offered David to use his armor, but after consideration, David concluded he needed to use the simple weapons God had used in the past. He went to face the giant with only his sling, a staff, and five stones.
David knew he was not facing this giant alone that day. The angel armies of heaven were with him. He declared to the giant, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, (Elohe Tzevaot) whom you have defied. This day He will deliver you into my hand. The battle belongs to the Lord” (vs-45, 47).
Five simple stones for battle
David picked up five smooth stones to use with his sling to fight Goliath. Have you ever wondered why David picked up five stones? The giant, Goliath, was representing the five city-states and their armies. He had a stone for each of the armies, but it would only require one stone to bring down the giant. With the Lord of Hosts standing with David, he put a stone in his sling and launched it at the giant. It struck him on his forehead and brought him down. God (Hashem) had the stone hit the mark with supernatural force and it destroyed the giant. David ran and stood over the Goliath and cut off his head. Goliath had stood as a terrorist representing the armies of the Philistines. The removal of his head was a sign that the whole army was defeated, (vs-51). This victory caused the Israeli army to rise with a shout and pursue the Philistines who ran in fear, (vs-52).
David, with his five simple stones, had the authority of God (Hashem) to defeat all the armies of the Philistines. In all likelihood, these armies included the five armies from the five city-states. The terrorist army was made up of different leaders who were looking to Goliath, who was the face of their terrorist army. When Goliath was defeated, all these armies were defeated and fled. They could not return to this region and establish their rule. The same is true for the different terrorist organizations now in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank. When Israel seeks to establish a local government, it should not have any of these past organizations, sworn to Israel’s destruction, included in the administration of Gaza or the West Bank. This would include five organizations such as: The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Marwan Barghouti, the Fatah, and PLO organizations. Once they are defeated, they should leave this disputed territory and allow the people of this region to have a terror-free place to live.
The Death of Hamas (Islamic Resistance Movement)
Yahya Sinwar, who is the terrorist leader of the armies in Gaza, is the face of Hamas in Gaza just as Goliath was the face of the Philistine army. Sinwar has urged Arabs living in Israel to kill Israelis and called for a regional war. He is the Goliath of the Gaza strip. He may not be nine feet tall in stature, but he is nine feet tall in the eyes of his follow terrorists. He is the mastermind of the October 7th attack on the Jewish communities near Gaza, which resulted in the deaths of over 1,200 Jewish people, the murder of innocent civilians, along with forty babies who were beheaded.
Currently, Hamas soldiers are beginning to surrender as Israel’s army (IDF) closes in on the southern region of Gaza. Prime Minister Netanyahu has declared the end of the war is coming and that the Hamas soldiers do not have to die for Sinwar. Instead, they can surrender. As in the biblical story of David and Goliath, the elimination of Sinwar will cause his army, made up of multiple terrorist organizations, to flee or surrender. The head of Hamas will be cut off, and Hamas will cease to exist. The war will end as it did in David’s day. There is an answer to David’s question, “Is there not a cause?” The cause is that the threat to Israel’s survival will be removed. Those who are defying the armies of Israel are defying the God of Israel (Elohe Tzevaot).
The Right to Rule Principle
There are many who have voiced, from different nations, that there must be a “Two-State” solution when the war is over made up of the various terrorist organizations in Gaza and the West Bank (Judea and Samaria). Some have suggested the Palestinian Authority (PLO) oversee the Gaza Strip and the Palestine state. Their spokesperson has said that Hamas would be a part of this governing body. Suppose we impose this idea on what happened with the war between the Philistines and Israel under King Saul. Imagine that the terrorist army of the Philistines insisted that they be allowed to keep the five-city states and govern them after they were defeated. This would not have been acceptable in that day. When they lost the war, they lost their “right to rule” or govern this territory. In America, we have another example of this principle of the “right to rule” over a territory. When America defeated Mexico in the American Mexican War, America took over what is now the state of Texas. Mexico was not allowed to return and say America was an occupier in the lands of Texas. Neither can the various terrorist organizations involved in this war with Israel come back once defeated and claim the right to rule over Gaza. Hamas and the Palestinian Authority refuse to even acknowledge the State of Israel. They are sworn to destroy the Jewish state and would continue to wage war against Israel in the future. It is time for terror-free leadership in the Gaza strip and in the West Bank region of Judea and Samaria. To ensure its survival, Israel must establish security in these regions of Israel that are free from terrorism or terrorist organizations. It doesn’t make sense to have a Two-State solution where the terrorist administrates a Palestinian state alongside Israel. They no longer have “the right to rule” once they are defeated.
The solution to peace in a region which is at war with Israel, is for Israel to drive out the terrorist organizations, who caused this war, and relocate them outside of this region. There is “a cause” as David stated. It includes the cause of freedom in this disputed region. Hamas, alongside all the terrorist organizations standing with Hamas, will lose this war they started with Israel. They will be scattered, and they will no longer rule in Israel.
As the Lord of Host stood with David, along with angel armies, He is now standing with Israel to finish this war and the strongman of Hamas. Israel will arise with a shout and scatter their enemies when Sinwar is neutralized. God (Hashem) himself will defeat those who defy Him and His chosen people. We can declare with David to the enemies of Israel that “there is a cause!” Israel can now declare, “We come to you in the name of the Lord of Hosts, (Elohe Tzevaot) the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day He will deliver you into our hands. The battle belongs to the Lord” (Hashem).
