A Response to Scott Edward Agyemang’s Article on GhanaWeb (28 June 2025)
The article by Mr. Scott Edward Agyemang attempts to assert an exclusive historical and divine claim of the Jewish people to the land of Israel by appealing primarily to the Bible and the Qur’an. While his effort to contextualise the issue scripturally is appreciated, it requires a more balanced and nuanced evaluation.
He states: “Many scholars and historians try to use other books and means to explain the issue but no other source, book or publication has clearly explained it better than the holy books.”
Ironically, while he discounts historical scholarship, he proceeds to reference historical events—such as the conquests by Assyrians, Babylonians, Romans, Ottomans, and the British—to support his claim. Also notable is the absence of any citations from the New Testament.
Before delving deeper, it is essential to clarify some foundational terms often used interchangeably or misunderstood:
Key Terms Explained
• Israel: The name given to Jacob after wrestling with God (Genesis 32:28). It later referred to his descendants and their nation.
• Children of Israel: The descendants of Jacob, also called Israelites.
• Jews: Originally referring to the tribe of Judah, it later came to represent the broader group of Israelites, especially after the Babylonian exile. It also refers to practitioners of the Jewish faith.
• Arabs: Semitic peoples with diverse origins.
They include:
o Al-‘Arab al-Bā’ida (Extinct Arabs) – e.g., ‘Ād, Thamūd – Qur’an 89:6-9
o Al-‘Arab al-‘Āriba (Pure Arabs) – descendants of Qahtan in southern Arabia)
o Al-‘Arab al-Musta‘riba (Arabized Arabs) – descendants of Ishmael, son of Abraham)
Notably, the 1st-century historian Flavius Josephus affirmed that the sons of Ishmael settled from the Euphrates to the Red Sea and founded Arab nations (Source: Antiquities of the Jews, Book 1, Chapter 12).
• Palestine: A term popularised after the Roman renaming of Judea to Palaestina in the 2nd century CE.
• Palestinian: Citizens of the land of Palestine prior to 1948, which included diverse ethnicities and religions. Currently refers mostly to non-Israeli people originating from the West Bank, Gaza and modern-day Israel. Some Israeli Arabs still consider themselves Palestinian.
• Philistines: An Aegean people who lived in Canaan (Joshua 13:3). Often confused with “Palestinians,” though unrelated.
• Israelis: Citizens of the modern State of Israel, established in 1948. This term encompasses people of various backgrounds, including Jews, Arabs (both Muslim and Christian), Druze, and others who hold Israeli citizenship. It is important not to confuse Israelis with Israelites, the ancient descendants of Jacob (Israel) described in the Bible. While the terms sound similar, they refer to entirely different historical and cultural identities.
• Christians: Followers of Jesus Christ, who believe in the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecies through the New Testament.
• Christian Bible: Divided into the Old and New Testaments; believed by Christians to be divinely inspired (2 Timothy 3:16).
• Hebrew Bible (Tanakh): The Jewish scriptures comprising the Torah, Prophets, and Writings.
• Qur’an: Islam’s holy scripture, revealed to the Noble Prophet Muhammad by God Almighty. It acknowledges prior scriptures but serves as a final criterion over them (Qur’an 2:136; 5:44–48).
Scriptural Reflections on the Holy Land
The land often referred to as the “Holy Land” includes parts of modern-day Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. Biblically, it was first inhabited by Canaanite tribes—Amorites, Hittites, Jebusites, etc. (Genesis 15:18–21). God promised this land to Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 12:1–7). While Abraham fathered many children, the divine covenant promised to him is primarily associated with two: Isaac, through whom the covenant was repeatedly reaffirmed, and Ishmael, who also received divine blessings of the covenant and was blessed with a great nation, according to scriptures.
However, it is important to note:
Ishmael:
• Ishmael, Abraham’s firstborn through Hagar, was also blessed:
“As for Ishmael… I will surely bless him… and make him into a great nation.” – Genesis 17:20
• Ishmael was circumcised (Genesis 17:23–26), a covenantal act (Genesis 17:9–14), showing inclusion in the Abrahamic promise.
• The land promise was conditional upon obedience to God and covenant fidelity (Deuteronomy 28:58–63; Leviticus 26:14–46).
Isaac:
• Isaac, miraculously born to Sarah in her old age, and according to the Bible, he is the son through whom the covenantal lineage was confirmed (Genesis 17:21).
• Through Isaac’s son Jacob (Israel), many major prophets arose—Joseph, Moses, David, as well as several others, and, according to Christian and Islamic belief, Jesus Christ, who happened to be the last in the chain of prophets from the line of Isaac.
• He is regarded as a prophet in both the Bible and Qur’an, and is part of the line of divine guidance:
“And We blessed him [Abraham] with Isaac and Jacob… and from his descendants: David, Solomon, Job, Joseph, Moses, and Aaron…” – Qur’an 6:84
• The adherents of Judaism believe in the prophets within their tradition but do not accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah. Christians, on the other hand, believe in the prophets of the Old Testament and affirm Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah, but do not recognise the Prophet Muhammed. Muslims believe in all the prophets from Adam to Muhammed without distinction (Qur’an 2:136, 285).
They regard the Noble Prophet Muhammed as the one foretold by Moses—a prophet like himself (Deuteronomy 18:18)—and as the ‘Spirit of Truth’ whom Jesus mentioned would come after him (John 16:7–15). Additionally, Muslims interpret Matthew 21:43 as referring to a new nation or community that would carry forward the divine mission, which they believe is fulfilled through Islam i.e. the other Abrahamic nation besides the nation of the children of Israel.
The New Testament, on the other hand, upholds the historical and theological importance of the land but shifts the focus from physical territory to the Kingdom of God—a spiritual inheritance for those who believe in Jesus the Messiah. Jesus says:
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” – Matthew 5:5
However, He also warned the Jewish leaders of His time:
“Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to [another] people who will produce the fruit of it.” – Matthew 21:43 (AMP)
This signifies that those who rejected Jesus forfeited the covenantal blessing, and it would be given to those—Jew or Gentile—who accepted Him. Paul elaborates on this by stating:
“If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” – Galatians 3:29
Thus, through faith in Jesus Christ, Gentiles are grafted into the spiritual lineage of Abraham, becoming partakers in the covenant and inheritors of God’s promises.
The Qur’an also affirms the sanctity of the Holy Land, referring to it as “the blessed land” (Surah 5:21). It confirms that the land was given to the Children of Israel i.e. the believers and followers of the Prophets of God in that era, yet consistently teaches that divine inheritance is tied not to bloodline alone, but to righteousness and obedience:
“We have written in the Scripture, after the Reminder: My righteous slaves will inherit the earth.” – Qur’an 21:105
“Said Moses to his people: ‘Seek help from Allah and be patient; indeed, the earth belongs to Allah. He gives it to whom He wills of His servants. And the end is for the righteous.’” – Qur’an 7:128
Points for Consideration
1. The first known inhabitants of the land were the Canaanites, not the Israelites.
2. Abraham, to whom the land was promised, was neither a Jew nor a Christian; he was a monotheist who submitted to God (Qur’an 3:67).
3. The firstborn son, Ishmael, held significance in scriptural traditions and was blessed and multiplied by God.
4. The land was not an unconditional inheritance; it was tied to obedience and righteousness.
5. Many Arabs are descendants of Ishmael, making them part of the Abrahamic family.
It should now be evident that all Abrahamic faiths—particularly Judaism and Islam—possess a scriptural basis that can be interpreted as supporting a connection or claim to the Holy Land.
On Justice, Peace, and Equality
Mr. Agyemang concludes by decrying antisemitism, affirming the divine and historical link between Jews and the land, and urging the world not to tolerate threats against Israel. While his call for justice is valid, his narrative unfortunately presents Jews as perpetual victims and others—implicitly Arabs or Palestinians—as aggressors.
Such a onesided narrative overlooks the complexity of modern geopolitics—particularly the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza (over 57,000 Palestinian casualties, including many civilians, following Israeli airstrikes and blockades), as well as the expansion of settlements in the West Bank declared illegal under international law by the ICJ and UN Security Council resolutions.
Condemning atrocities must never be selective. We are all humans, created from a single origin to know and respect one another—not to despise each other.
The Qur’an reminds us:
“O mankind! We created you from a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may know one another. Verily, the most honorable of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous.” – Qur’an 49:13
The Formation of the State of Israel in 1948: A Brief Overview
The establishment of modern Israel in 1948 was the culmination of complex political maneuvers, colonial history, international diplomacy, and nationalist aspirations.
The Zionist movement, which began in late 19th-century Europe, sought to create a Jewish homeland in Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire. This effort intensified with growing antisemitism in Europe and culminated in the Balfour Declaration of 1917, in which Britain, then a global imperial power, expressed support for a “national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine—without consulting the Arab population already living there.
Under the British Mandate (1920–1948), tensions escalated as Jewish immigration increased, especially during and after the Holocaust. Britain made conflicting promises to both Jews and Arabs and ultimately handed the issue over to the United Nations.
In 1947, the UN proposed a partition plan (Resolution 181), dividing the land into Jewish and Arab states. The Jewish leadership accepted it; the Arab states and Palestinian Arabs rejected it, viewing it as unjust and imposed by Western powers.
On May 14, 1948, as British forces withdrew, David Ben-Gurion declared the State of Israel. The next day, five Arab nations invaded, leading to the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Israel not only survived but expanded its territory beyond the UN plan, and many Palestinians who escaped the war were not allowed to return leading to generations of Palestinian refugees scattered around the world. This war displaced over 700,000 Palestinians, a tragedy known as the Nakba (“catastrophe”).
While Zionist leaders organised the internal structures of the state, external actors—notably Britain, the United Nations, the United States, and the Soviet Union—played critical roles. The U.S. was the first to recognise Israel diplomatically, followed closely by the USSR, both motivated by post-war geopolitical calculations.
Thus, Israel’s creation was a political reality shaped by the West, British colonial withdrawal, and Cold War dynamics—often at the expense of the indigenous Palestinian population whose own right to self-determination remains unresolved.
Questions for the Modern Age
Having considered the scriptures, let us confront the following critical questions of our time—especially amid the tragic events in the Middle East:
1. Should any nation commit war crimes without accountability, even if it claims divine entitlement?
2. Should international laws apply unequally depending on race or religion?
3. Should an entire population be punished for what a small minority did?
4. Should the global community ignore the deaths of women and children in the name of self-defense?
5. Should we choose diplomacy or endless war?
6. Is illegal occupation ever justifiable under the excuse of security?
These questions demand honest reflection from every one of us.
Conclusion
No people—Jewish, Christian, Muslim, or otherwise—should be allowed to violate international norms or moral principles. No one should seek the extermination of another. Peace is a shared responsibility, not the birthright of one group.
We are all created by God, and the Earth is His. It is not owned by race, religion, or nationality, but entrusted to humanity to live justly and harmoniously.
Let us choose humanity over hostility. Truth over partisanship. Peace over propaganda.
Salaam! Shalom! Peace!
Author:
Dr. Muhammed Siraj
Ameer, An-Nur Al-Islamiyyah
