On December 6, 2017 the world witnessed history in the making – or did we? Although President Donald Trump definitely made history by being the first U.S. President to formally declare the United States will recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and act upon that declaration by moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, history reveals Jerusalem has been the capital of Israel since antiquity and was formally declared the capital in modernity as well. In 1000 B.C. God used king David as a vessel to declare Y’rushalayim (Jerusalem) the capital of Israel. David united the twelve tribes of Israel into a unified kingdom, and in 1950 the Israeli Knesset legally documented the modern city of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel with the passage of the Jerusalem Law. The Jerusalem Law formally declared Jerusalem the eternal, undivided capital of the State of Israel, and while we certainly applaud President Trump’s recognition and relocation of the U.S. Embassy, Jerusalem has been the capital of Israel since antiquity, and Israel – like all other nations – has the right to determine and defend its capital.
“If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget her skill. May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not exalt Jerusalem above my chief joy” (Psalm 137:5-6 NASB).
