“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28
There is probably no more recognizable image of the horrors of Hitler’s meticulous plan to exterminate the Jewish people- my people, dubbed the “Final Solution”, than the gates of Auschwitz- Birkenau. In this one massive hell-on-earth camp alone more than one million (1,000,000+) men, women, and children were gassed, shot, strangled, starved, tortured, experimented on, or worked to death. There were many other camps, as many as 15,000 in total: Bergen-Belsen, Buchenwald, Chelmno, Dachau, Majdanek to name a few …more than 6,000,000 innocent Jewish people, and millions of other “undesirables”- gypsies, mentally retarded and disabled, homosexuals, Jehovah witnesses, communists suffered horrific deaths. There have been countless other attempts throughout history at killing off God’s chosen people, not quite as shocking as what was revealed when Germany finally surrendered. European Jewry had been almost totally decimated, more than 5,000 Jewish communities were obliterated without a trace; homes, businesses, wealth, and other possessions confiscated. After being liberated the survivors were gathered in displaced persons (DP) camps, some making their way back to where they had previously lived, some for generations.
On the face of these circumstances the plight of the Jewish people seemed hopeless, yet against all odds and with the active opposition of Britain aiding and supplying the Arab League nations, the modern state of Israel rose from the literal ashes of the worst genocide in the history.
“Who has ever heard of such things?
Who has ever seen things like this?
Can a country be born in a day
or a nation be brought forth in a moment?
Yet no sooner is Zion in labor
than she gives birth to her children.”
Isaiah 66:8
I do not know of a more profound example of God working together all things.
God’s gifts and callings – starting with the house of Israel- are irrevocable.
You may not agree with me, but I believe that- not in spite of, but rather because of-
The state of Israel was forged out of the fires of adversity and had it not been for the horrors of haShoah
I personally doubt whether the nation of Israel would exist today.
God’s ultimate plans cannot be thwarted, beloved.
The Lord cannot be either surprised or ambushed.
He knows both the beginning and end.
I have read the end of the Book.
Adonai never promised us things would be easy,
but He does promise that as we seek Him He will be found
and He never leave us nor forsake us.
Perhaps this is why Rav Shaul aka the Apostle Paul encourages us to “rejoice in the Lord always!”