Lindsey Graham’s recent speech warning that America would lose God’s favor if it abandons Israel has reignited a theological and political debate at the heart of U.S. foreign policy. Speaking in South Carolina, Graham declared that “if America pulls the plug on Israel, God will pull the plug on us,” framing support for the Jewish state as not only a strategic necessity but a biblical imperative. He emphasized that Israel, despite accusations from critics, has acted with restraint in its war against Hamas, contrasting the terrorist group’s openly genocidal intent with Israel’s moral restraint.
Graham criticized the use of the term “genocide” to describe Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, arguing that the label is politically weaponized. “If Israel wanted to commit genocide, they could. They have the capability to do that. They choose not to,” he said. “Hamas … would commit genocide in 30 seconds. They just can’t.”
Graham cast Israel as the most reliable ally of the US and emphatically defended the Jewish state as a force for good in the Middle East.
“Israel is not the bad guys. They’re the good guys. The bad guys are the radical Islamists who would kill everybody in this room if they could,” Graham said.
This line of argument is not new for Graham, who has long positioned himself as one of Israel’s staunchest defenders in the Senate. Though his personal religious background has not been as prominently discussed as that of some of his colleagues, his rhetoric is steeped in evangelical themes that resonate deeply with Christians who see modern Israel as a fulfillment of biblical prophecy and as a nation uniquely blessed by God.
Other American politicians have made the biblical case for blessing Israel even more explicitly. Mike Huckabee, a Baptist minister and now U.S. Ambassador to Israel, has often cited Genesis 12:3, where God promises to bless those who bless Israel and curse those who curse it. For Huckabee, Israel’s survival and restoration are living proof of God’s promises coming to life, and he has consistently called on Christians to stand with Israel as a matter of faith. Ted Cruz has similarly anchored his pro-Israel advocacy in Scripture, telling audiences that Christians are commanded to bless Israel and invoking Genesis 12:3 in debates about U.S. foreign policy.
Not all American voices agree with this theological approach. Tucker Carlson, in a pointed exchange with Cruz, pressed him on whether biblical commands to bless Israel apply to the modern nation-state. Carlson questioned whether today’s political Israel should be equated with the Israel of Scripture, arguing that Cruz was overstating the biblical mandate. His skepticism reflects a perspective that sees Israel in the Bible as primarily symbolic or spiritual, a stance that echoes older traditions of replacement theology, or supersessionism, which claimed the Church had inherited the promises once made to Israel.
Replacement theology, once dominant in much of the Christian world, held that God’s covenant with the Jewish people had been nullified and transferred to the Church. This view often fueled Christian hostility toward Jews and delegitimized Jewish claims to their ancestral land. In contrast, Christian Zionism, rooted in dispensational theology, insists that God’s promises to Israel remain eternal and that modern events—including the establishment of the State of Israel—are fulfillments of prophecy.
The clash between Graham, Huckabee, and Cruz on one side and Carlson on the other demonstrates how these theological divides continue to shape American politics. For evangelicals who see the Bible as commanding support for Israel, Graham’s words resonate as a warning that America’s spiritual destiny is tied to its treatment of the Jewish people. For others who lean toward replacement theology, or at least a less literal reading of biblical promises, support for Israel is seen as a political choice rather than a divine command.
While Graham’s comments echoed the staunchly pro-Israel position favored by the Republican Party’s foreign policy establishment, some in the party, such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-SC) have called for greater scrutiny of US backing of Israel.
That is quite a statement and is an acknowledgment that nuclear-armed Israel is more than capable of defending themselves, by themselves, and not only defeating their enemies, but completely wiping them out!” Green wrote on Twitter. “We don’t believe we go to heaven based on how much money we blindly give and how many bombs we drop on the secular government of Israel’s enemies,” Greene continued.
In the end, Graham’s declaration that God will “pull the plug” on America if it abandons Israel highlights more than just a foreign policy position. It underscores the enduring power of Scripture in shaping political discourse, the deep bond between many American Christians and the State of Israel, and the lingering theological battles over whether the promises to Israel remain in force today.
