Millions of Christian Zionists all over the world are praying and hoping for a doomsday war that will end with the complete obliteration of Humanity. The Bible prophesies a “battle on the great day of God Almighty” (Revelations 16: 14, Christian Bible). What the Bible intended as warning, however, has been reinterpreted as a promise. Dread of God’s wrath has been replaced with eager anticipation of His fury. A bizarre, apocalyptic hope has been covertly inculcated into the Christian faith over the last hundred years. Its modern popularity may be traced largely to the Scofield Reference Bible, a 1908 version with strong pro-Zionist interpretation.
In the 19th century, America’s churches would not have supported Jewish occupation of the beloved Holy Land. The Church blamed the Jews for the persecution of Jesus, and anti-Jewish sentiment was powerful. Jewish Zionist leaders needed a tool to change America’s and eventually the world’s view of Zionism. World Zionist leaders enlisted the help of the European book publisher Oxford University Press, which in turn enlisted the help of US Civil War veteran Cyrus Scofield. He was not a Bible scholar or spiritual leader; he was chosen because of his political charm, charisma, and influence.
Scofield, it seems, had never even been involved in the Zionist movement before he was approached by Oxford University Press. Reportedly, in addition to generous royalties from the publisher, Scofield was supported by Samuel Untermeyer, one of the wealthiest and most powerful Zionists in America. It is believed that Untermeyer, not Scofield, wrote, dictated, or suggested the famous Scofield notes that effectively re-wrote the King James Version of the Bible. Added in margins, between verses and chapters, and as footnotes, the Scofield notes began creating and promoting a pro-Zionist subculture within the Church. Oxford, which owned the original copyright, released the Scofield Bible in 1908, and, with lavish advertising and promotion, succeeded in making the Scofield Bible a best-seller and a standard for Christian Bible study. After Scofield’s death, the Bible named after him was repeatedly altered, with some notes removed and other, more pro-Zionist notes added.
In describing the newer editions of the Scofield Bible, author C. E. Carlson (“The Source of the Problem in the Mid-East: Why Judeo-Christians Support War”) stated, “Its anti-Arab, Christian subculture theology has made an enormous contribution to war, turning Christians into participants in genocide against Arabs in the latter half of the 20th century.”
When the original Scofield notes were published, there was no State of Israel. After 1947, the Scofield Bible was rewritten to make it a sin to oppose the United Nations decision to grant statehood to Israel.
Carlson continued, “It is no exaggeration to say that the 1967 Oxford 4th Edition deifies –makes a god of – the State of Israel, a state that did not even exist when Scofield wrote the original footnotes in 1908. This writer believes that, had it not been for misguided anti-Arab race hatred promoted by Christian Zionist leaders in America, neither the Gulf War nor the Israeli war against the Palestinians would have occurred, and a million or more people who have perished would be alive today.”
Zionists believe that Jews have the right to possess all the land between the Nile and the Euphrates. This claim is based on God’s promise to Abraham: “…Raise your eyes and look out from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west, for I give all the land that you see to you and your offspring forever” (Genesis 13: 14-15); “To your offspring, I assign this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates” (Genesis 13: 15, Jewish Bible). What the Zionists missed is that Abraham was the father of Ishmael as well as Isaac and that Abraham was not a Jew or an Israeli. Modern Zionism seeks Jewish/Israeli domination of all of Palestine and the Middle East, expanding on God’s Promised Land.
Zionism formally began in the late 19th century following Austro-Hungarian journalist Theodor Herzl’s publication Der Judenstaat. The Zionist movement supports Jewish migration to the Promised Land and has gained momentum since its success in establishing Israel in 1948. It seeks to rush God’s plan for the Messianic Age.
God promised a Messianic Age during which Jerusalem is restored and the nations will relish in peace and justice: “How welcome on the mountain are the footsteps of the herald announcing happiness, heralding good fortune, announcing victory, telling Zion, ‘Your God is King!’ Hark! Your watchmen raise their voices; as one, they shout for joy; for every eye shall behold the Lord’s return to Zion. Raise a shout together, O ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord will comfort His people, will redeem Jerusalem. The Lord will bare His holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and the very ends of earth shall see the victory of our God” (Isaiah 52: 7-10, Jewish Bible).
“Thus said the Lord of Hosts, ‘I will rescue My people from the lands of the east and from the lands of the west, and I will bring them home to dwell in Jerusalem. They shall be My people, and I will be their God in truth and sincerity’” (Zechariah 8: 7-8, Jewish Bible).
God’s plan in establishing peace and rebuilding Jerusalem begins with the sending of the Messiah. Traditionally, Jews believe that the spirit of the Messiah walks among us, waiting for the right time to appear. Christians and Muslims believe that the Messiah has already appeared in the person of Jesus and that Jesus will return to fulfil the Messianic prophecies. Zionists, however, are tired of waiting for God to act on His promises, and they seek to force His will through their own efforts.
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein (How Firm a Foundation) explains, “While the Zionist movement sought to actualise many elements of the traditional messianic dream, it also contained new secular nationalistic dimensions not found in those earlier messianic expectations. Its primary goal was to build a national homeland for the Jewish people through human initiative and not to wait for God to send his Messiah.”
With the Scofield Bible, as the Jewish Zionists had hoped, Christians rallied to the Zionist cause. Jews have no delusions, however, about Scofield Christian love for Jews. Christian Zionists have their own objective: assemble the Jews into the Holy Land so that they may be annihilated in the War of Armageddon.
The Greek word armageddon is from two Hebrew words, har (mount) and megiddow (rendezvous). The literal meaning is ‘mount of the rendezvous’ and has been used to refer to a world war expected to precede the destruction of planet Earth. The word armageddon is used only once in the Bible: “Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called ‘Armageddon’ (Revelations 16: 16, Christian Bible). Megiddo was a Canaanite city located on the southern edge of the great plain of Issachar (Valley of Jezreel). The phrase “War of Armageddon” does not appear anywhere in the Bible.
Another word used by doomsday preachers is apocalypse. This is from the Greek apokalysis (revelation), which is used in the Book of Revelations, the last book of the Christian Bible. In Revelations, the author uses mystic, highly symbolic imagery, which is open to interpretation.
Christian Zionists believe that God will exterminate all Jews except 144,000 who convert to Christianity and worship Jesus as God. An angel instructs the apocalyptic angels, “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” The writer of Revelations recorded, “Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel” (Revelations 7: 3-4, Christian Bible).
Christian Zionists do not worry about their own fate because they will be caught up in Scofield’s “rapture.” The word ‘rapture’ does not appear in the Bible but is based on a New Testament Scripture describing the events surrounding Jesus’ return: “…we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them [the resurrected believers] in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air…” (1 Thessalonians 4: 17, Christian Bible). Scofield emphasised this being “caught up” beyond the importance given to it by the traditional Church. Scofield also promoted the belief system called ‘dispensationalism,’ which identifies, in current international events, the signs of the coming of the Messiah.
Former White House staff writer Grace Halsell (Forcing God’s Hand) interviewed a traditional Christian who relayed to her, “Scofield’s system of biblical interpretation destroys the unity of the Bible, particularly the unity of God’s love and grace to mankind for all ages. It violates the meaning of Christ and Christianity. …. Scofield’s dispensationalism places not Christ but rather Jews and Israel on center stage. Holding that the Jewish state has first priority with God, the doctrine makes a cult of the land of Israel. It places the Jewish state and its priority with God above the Church and the teaching of its head, Jesus Christ. Scofield’s dispensationalism not only holds Christ and Christianity hostage, but also God. It teaches that God cannot permit Christ to return until the Jews do their ‘earthly’ part in a Scofield-devised scenario. Scofield taught that ‘God has earthly promises for His earthly elect’ – the Jews, and ‘heavenly promises for His heavenly elect’ – the Christians. That is pure Scofield. But it’s not to be found in Holy Scriptures.”
When Grace Halsell asked a Scofield Christian about Muslims, he explained that God has plans for Jews and Christians but not for any others – unless they become Christians. Christians are assigned a heavenly plan while Jews’ “earthly” plan is to re-create Israel so that the War of Armageddon may begin. Christian Zionists expect to safely watch the apocalyptic war from Heaven after they have been swooped up in the rapture.
I want to be perfectly clear: All Jews are not Zionists; all Israelis are not Zionists; all Christians are not Zionists; all Zionists are not terrorists. Several Jewish and Christian organisations have been formed for the sole purpose of exposing, confronting, and curbing the Zionist message. One of the most successful organisations is Jewish Voice for Peace. Its mission statement claims, “Jewish Voice for Peace is a diverse and democratic community of activists inspired by Jewish tradition to work together for peace, social justice, and human rights. We support the aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians for security and self-determination.”
Every sincere and true believer must assist and support organisations such as Jewish Voice for Peace by exposing the hate and confusion behind the Scofield apocalyptic theology. Pray that guidance and the voice of logic will break the Zionist wall of unreason.
Pray that Christian Zionists will replace their hope for death and destruction with hope for Humanity’s redemption. Pray that Jewish Zionists will replace their reliance on human efforts with faith in God’s divine plan, including His timing. Pray that Israel will remember God’s promise: “When My people, who bear My name, humble themselves, pray, and seek My favour, and turn from their evil ways, I will hear in My heavenly abode and forgive their sins and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7: 14, Jewish Bible). Pray for the healing of Palestine and Israel and for a peaceful solution to the ongoing conflict.
“The truly spiritual Jew will patiently wait for ha Mashiach [the Messiah] by faithfully performing mitzvot (‘good deeds’) in order to make the world a better place for all people. The good Christian will prepare for Jesus’ return by humbly proclaiming the true Gospel message of repentance and forgiveness. And the genuine Muslim will abide peacefully within the global community while sharing a universal religion that makes us all members of the family of God. Peace on Earth will encircle Humanity when we all realise that Messiah will usher in salvation for the whole world and that he will follow God’s plan, not the narrow concepts of any religious cult” (from my book The Bible and the Qur’an at the Edge of Renaissance, available summer 2009, God willing).
[Christian Bible Scriptures are quoted from the Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible (Tennessee, USA: AMG Publishers); Jewish Bible Scriptures are quoted from Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures (Philadelphia, USA: The Jewish Publication Society). You may e-mail the author at [email protected].]