Stirred by a Noble Theme: God's Heart, Israel and the Nations - Annie Elliott

It's not a terribly long book, about 200 pages, but Stirred by a Noble Theme: God's Heart, Israel and the Nations, by Christian pastor and personal friend Annie Elliott, delivers a religious, spiritual and powerful punch, and one overriding message. That message, simply enough and painstakingly documented using Biblical literature, is that the land of Israel, for all eternity, belongs to God and the Jewish people. Period, end of argument.

Written and published in 2016, the book, according to Elliott, was divinely inspired. And it was produced quickly, in about one month, during her 30th trip to Israel, where she has been leading and accompanying different North American Christian groups for at least two decades. She explains: "I felt an invitation from God Himself to come to His beloved City of Jerusalem to sit alone with Him, to pour through the scriptures and capture His heart and His passion for Israel and the nations. There was an overwhelming sense of needing to be in His covenant land, in His Covenant City, among His covenant people."
       Elliott completed the last couple of chapters at home, in Ottawa, while sitting in the prayer chapel on Parliament Hill "overlooking the Peace Tower and the Prime Minister's official office."
       A devotional tone carries throughout the small volume, and certainly sets a sombre mood. This is not the kind of sit-back-and-learn reading I want to do every day -- more the morning pitch for prayers or Tehillim (Psalms) -- but nevertheless it is an important book for anyone who wants to understand, on religious grounds, why Israel deserves to exist. Anyone who understands God intellectually knows the land of Israel belongs to Him and the Jews. But for someone grappling with the concept of God and wondering what's behind the eternal conflict in the Middle East, Elliott sets the record -- at least the religious record -- straight.
       The book begins with an unusually high number of pre-chapters: a loving, Christian dedication to Jesus; acknowledgements, beginning with God Himself; endorsements; a forward by retired Israeli ambassador to Canada Alan Baker, 2004 - 2008; an Introduction with a beautiful poem -- presumably written by the author, entitled God's Noble Theme; and, finally, a prologue. 
       After that, through ten chapters, the author purports to prove -- in exhausting and exquisite  Biblical detail -- that God adores Israel and the Jews and that He bestowed this piece of sacred property upon them.
       There are few pages in Stirred that are not graced with scripture, from both the New Testament and Hebrew liturgy. Obidiah, Psalms, Proverbs, Jeremiah, Zechariah, Ezekial, Isaiah, the Jewish Minor Prophets, Kings, Joel, Revelations, John, Romans, Colossians, and of course Exodus: these books, and more, are all cited and the quotes explained at length. And they all lend credence to the argument that the land of Israel belongs to God and God's Chosen People.
       But Elliott does not have complete tunnel vision. She cites the words of such modern giants as Winston Churchill and she analyzes some political and historical facts to help prove her case.
       Elliott has particular fun with the Biblical statement: "For the day of the Lord upon all nations is near; As you have done (to Israel), it shall be done to you; Your reprisal shall return upon your own head." In this vein, she chronicles dozens of "prophetic parallels" and "catastrophic connections," many within the last 30 years. For each event and statement that targets Israel negatively, she argues that a concurrent cataclysmic happening is the direct result of the threat to the Holy State. Most of these connected instances relate to statements by political leaders about a Palestinian state followed by horrendous and fatal weather storms.
       As momentous and close in time as they are, these situations are frankly not convincingly God-inspired.
       Elliott, who is clearly on a mission of love, puts a special focus on Canada's relationship with Israel, an appropriate spotlight since Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, between 2006 and 2015, boldly supported the tiny embattled country like no other international leader. He made Canada Israel's staunchest ally in the world for a time. In January 2014, as Elliott reminds us, Harper addressed the Israeli Knesset, praising the country for its resilience and as "a great example to the world. It is a story, essentially, of a people whose response to suffering has been to move beyond resentment and build a most extraordinary society -- a vibrant democracy, a freedom-loving country." It's hard to remember the last time a non-Israeli world leader proudly declared such obvious truth about Israel.
       But Elliott is not superficial enough to take everything Harper said about Israel at face value; she knows Canada's official policy never changed during his almost ten years at the helm. Indeed, she says, after pages and pages of praise for Harper's words, "Some of the statements in 'Canada's Policy on Key Issues in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict' stand in glaring violation and contradiction to the Word of God. Canada's official position clearly supports a 'two-state solution.' Canada has joined the peace talks and 'land for peace' proposals in an effort either to support and/or pressure Israel to divide her covenant land with intent to create a Palestinian state."
       For many who love Israel, including myself, it is argument enough that this sliver of Middle East land has sufficient guns and military know-how to probably guarantee its continued survival. For such apparent war mongers, we don't need Biblical or even secular arguments to prove the blameless nation's right to exist. It's already been shown over and over that the enemies of Israel will never be swayed by words. Nevertheless, I am grateful and enriched for having read Elliott's book.

As with most books on Lynne Like's, you can get this on Amazon.ca.