Our National Duty
As an Israeli nation, we cannot win the smallest skirmish, but as a Jewish nation, we cannot lose the fiercest battle. Every Jew, in Eretz Yisrael and outside, is called up for national duty. Through our mitzvot and teshuvah, may we be blessed with total victory!
What are the three worst days in modern-day Israeli history?
- October 7, 2024, the massacre of 1,200 Jews in the Western Negev.
- Oct 6, 1973, the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War, where Arab armies sneak-attacked Israel and killed 2,800 Israelis.
- September 28, 2000, the day Ariel Sharon toured the Temple Mount The PLO used it as a pretext to launch the Oslo War, murdering 1,400 Israelis.
One tragedy happened 36 hours before Rosh Hashanah. Another occurred on Yom Kippur. The most recent happened on Simchat Torah. Our worst tragedies happened in Elul and Tishrei.
What is THE worst day in recent Israeli history? June 17, 1967.
That was our modern-day “Golden Calf” moment. Just three days after celebrating Shavuot, the festival of receiving the Torah, we made our first-ever land concession to our enemies. We gave Har HaBayit, the Temple Mount, to our enemies less than two weeks after conquering it.
Since that treacherous day, we have never won a single war.
Listening Now
From the day we abandoned our mission by betraying the holiest site in the universe, we have been moving in reverse. We have given up, walked away from, or lost to our enemies over 80% of the Land God gives us.
Our army is 100 times stronger today than it was in 1967. It is 1,000 times mightier than it was in 1948. Even the Arabs rely on our army to protect them. It does not matter. It is not the IDF that gives the IDF its strength. It is Hashem, our Master of Legions.
Moshe tells us in Sefer Devarim: Do not fear them, for it is God, your God, who is fighting for you. (Devarim 3:22)
We cannot win without God.
In the days leading up to the Six Day War in 1967, every Jew openly practiced baseless love. Beatniks from South Tel Aviv would march on Bnei Brak, pound open the doors of Rabbis, and beg them for their tefillin so they could pray for their brothers and sisters.
In contrast, during the days leading up to the Nova Festival Massacre in 2023, we were physically assaulting Jews in Tel Aviv who wanted to publicly pray to God on Yom Kippur.
As an Israeli nation, we cannot win. As a Jewish nation, we cannot lose.
It is the duty of all of us to win this war and every successive war that we must fight. We win by serving Hashem with all our hearts through His mitzvot and His Torah.
We cannot defeat America. We cannot defeat Europe. We cannot defeat the Arabs. Hashem can. Hashem will. Our job is to do everything we can to bring His promised victory closer.
Our National Duty
When we complete our mission to be Jews actively serving Hashem in the Land of the Jewish People, God grants us victory.
The greatest defense of our nation is to fulfill the Torah of Israel. The greatest petition to our King to expand the Land of Israel is to serve the God of Israel.
He blesses us with victory regardless of our own military. We had no army when Hashem split the sea and destroyed Egypt. We had no army when we stood up to the evil forces of the Greek emperor Antiochus. When we fought Balaam and the Midianites, Hashem blessed our army that not a single warrior lost his life. When we fought the seven Arab armies in 1948, and the four Arab armies in 1967, despite having zero military aid from America, or from any nation – Hashem blessed us with miraculous victories.
Hashem blesses us with victory for the purpose of serving Him.
It is up to us to use this Elul and Tishrei to strengthen our mitzvot, middot (character traits), and chessed to protect our brothers and sisters and to enable our sons and daughters to live in a stronger nation.
At any moment, Mashiach can come. Our brothers and sisters scattered throughout the world will come home. Our Land will be like an impenetrable fortress. All our family in heaven, from Avraham Avinu to Hersh Goldberg-Polin, will return to join us in Israel.
We will rule over other nations, and no nation or union of nations will ever try to tell us what to do. We will loan to them, and they will borrow from us.
We will do what is right in God’s eyes without concern for human rights or international law.
Our children will not be murdered. They will not be harmed.
This is what is at stake, and Hashem puts it in our hands.
At every moment, we can strive to hasten the day when we can receive Hashem’s promise through His anointed King David:
God will bless His nation with strength. God will bless His nation with peace. (Psalms 29:11)
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David Ben Horin lives in Afula with his family, millions of sunflowers, and Matilda, our local camel. David‘s Israeli startup, 300 Marketing Solutions, is a lean marketing agency for startups and small businesses that creates and promotes SEO-optimized ROI-driven to the right audience on LinkedIn to make your business the star of the show.
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