Dear Roger,
What do I really know about Israel? Are they really God’s chosen people?
Sincerely,
Tina
Dear Tina,
Jews are, biblically speaking, the “chosen people of God” and dearly loved by Him. Another reason for Christians to support the nation of Israel is because of the Abrahamic Covenant. We read of God’s promise in Genesis 12:2-3, “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (see also Genesis 27:29; Numbers 24:9).
Here are a few extraordinary facts about Israel. These fact are compiled from Jewish Federation of the North Shore 39 Norman Street, Suite 302
Salem, MA 01970 978-224-4900 info@jfns.org.
Geography:
· Israel is only 1/6 of 1% of the landmass of the Middle East.
· Israel is roughly half the size of Lake Michigan.
· The Sea of Galilee , at 695 ft. below sea level, is the lowest freshwater lake in the world.
· The Dead Sea is the lowest surface point on earth, at about 1,373 feet below sea level.
· Israel is the only nation in the world that entered the 21st century with a net gain in its number of trees.
· Jericho is the oldest continuously inhabited town in the world.
· The Mount of Olives in Jerusalem is the oldest, continually used cemetery in the world.
Demographics:
· Israel ‘s population is half the size of Metro New York City.
· Israel has only 2% of the population of the Middle East.
· Israel has the highest ratio of university degrees per capita in the world.
· Israel produces more scientific papers per capita than any other nation in the world – by a large margin.
· Israel has the highest number of scientists and technicians per capita in the world – by a large margin.
· Israel has the highest number of engineers per capita in the world.
· Israel has the highest number of PhD’s per capita in the world.
· Israel has the highest number of physicians per capita in the world.
· Israel has the largest percentage of its workforce employed in technical professions in the world.
· Israel is the largest immigrant-absorbing nation in the world, per capita.
· Israel is the only country in the Middle East where the Christian population has grown over the last 50 years.
· Israel is the only country in the Middle East where Christians, Muslims and Jews are all free to vote.
· Israel is the only country in the Middle East where women enjoy full political rights.
Economics:
· Israel has the largest number of startup companies per capita in the world.
· Israel is the world’s largest wholesale diamond center, finally surpassing Antwerp in the 1970’s.
· Most of the cut & polished diamonds in the world come from Israel.
· Israel has the largest number of NASDAQ listed companies outside of the US and Canada.
· Israel was the first country to have a free trade agreement with the United States.
· Apart from the Silicon Valley, Israel has the highest concentration of hi-tech companies in the world.
· The cell phone was developed in Israel at Motorola’s largest development center.
· The Voice Mail technology was developed in Israel.
· In the early 80’s, IBM chose an Israeli-designed computer chip as the brains for its first personal computers.
· The first anti-virus software for computers was developed in Israel in 1979.
· Most of the Windows NT and XP operating systems were developed in Israel by Microsoft.
· Both the Pentium-4 and Centrino processors were entirely designed, developed and produced in Israel .
· The Pentium MMX Chip technology was designed in Israel at Intel.
· Israel has the highest number of home computers per capita in the world.
· The technology for the AOL Instant Messenger and ICQ was developed in 1996 by 4 young Israelis.
· Israel was the first Middle Eastern country to launch a satellite, the Ofek 1, on September 19, 1988.
Culture:
· Hebrew is the only case of a dead national language being revived in all of world history.
· Hebrew had not been spoken as a native tongue by anyone for centuries.
· Today it is the native tongue of millions of people.
· Israel has more museums per capita than any other nation in the world.
· Israel has more orchestras per capita than any other nation in the world.
· Israel publishes more books per capita than any other nation in the world.
· Israel publishes more books translated from other languages than any other nation in the world.
· Israel reads more books per capita than any other nation in the world.
· The most independent and free Arabic press in the Middle East is in Israel
Military/Security:
· Israel has the largest fleet of F-16 aircraft outside of the US .
· Israel has the world’s most impenetrable airline security.
· Israel spends more money per capita on its own protection than any country in the world.
Other:
· Israel’s dairy cows are the most productive dairy cows in the world.
· They average 25,432 pounds of milk per cow per year, compared to just 18,747 pounds from American cows; 17,085 from Canadian cows; 13,778 from European Union cows; 10,207 from Australian cows; and 6,600 from Chinese cows.
· Israel has more in-vitro fertilization per capita than anywhere in the world, and it’s free.
· Israelis, per capita, are the world’s biggest consumers of fruits and vegetables.
· Of the 175 UN Security Council resolutions passed before 1990, 97 were directed against Israel .
· Of the 690 UN General Assembly resolutions voted on after 1990, 429 were directed against Israel.
So what must we do to support God’s people, even today?
Listen to the words of the psalmist:
Psalms 122:6 “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, they shall prosper that love you.”