FREQUENTLY we are told that Palestine is at the present time blossoming as the rose under the magic touch of the thrift and industry of the Jewish people as they are returning to the land. This statement is rather broad. The truth about the matter is that those sections of Palestine which have been purchased by the Jews and which are now being developed are the ones that are blossoming as the rose. The rest of the land with the exception of the highways which have been constructed since the war is just the same as it has been through the centuries with the exception of the wreckage of time.

According to statements which I learned in 1937 from the Jewish Agencies, the Jews have purchased seven per cent of the land. It is this small portion of the country that is being developed and is blossoming as a rose. The remaining 93 per cent, which largely is in the hands of the Arabs, is in the same condition as formerly. In no wise can one say that this major portion of the country is blossoming as a rose.

The Jewish population according to the Palestinian government amounted to a little over 425,000 as of December 31, 1936. These figures appeared in the local Jerusalem paper in January, 1937. During 1937 and the first six months of 1938, of course, there has been a limited immigration which has swelled the grand total mentioned above. At the present I do not have the official figures. It is worthy of note that more than ten times as many Jews have returned to Palestine under the impulse of the Zionistic movement than came back under Zerubbabel and Joshua after the Babylonian captivity.

If the unrest in Palestine could be allayed, if the Jews could be permitted to enter there as rapidly as they are able to do, and if there is no European or general war in the next ten years, Palestine might become one of the most influential countries in the world. This fact would be possible because of its central location, Jewish ingenuity, and wealth.

In 1937 there were over two hundred and twenty colonies and settlements throughout the plains of Sharon, the Emek Israel, and upper Galilee. In these portions of the country most of the Jewish colonization projects are carried out. It is true that a few attempts along this line have been made in the hill country.

Everything that is accomplished by the Jews in Palestine is done according to the latest scientific methods. The result is that their efforts are always successful.

The Jews are returning to Palestine with a nationalism and a devotion to the country such as is nowhere else, so far as I know, to be found. This fact is an important matter because from it alone we know that we are approaching the time when the Messiah will arise and return to Zion, according to Psalm 102:11f.

The present return to the land of the fathers is the beginning of the fulfillment of the vision of the Valley of Dry Bones in Ezekiel 37. In the language of this prediction the bones are coming together each to its companion, and the sinews uniting them are beginning to appear. This process of development will continue until the nation is restored and settled in the land.

But the Spirit of Life will never enter the body politic until the gospel of grace is given to the Jews and they receive the true Messiah as their Lord, Saviour, and King. When they accept Him nationally, the remnant surviving at that time will rise up in the power of its new life and will go forth into every nook and corner of the world proclaiming the unsearchable riches of Jesus Christ. This fact is in accordance with the promises made to Abraham, the great progenitor of the Hebrew race. God will yet use His ancient people in blessing the entire world. Let us who know the Lord in a personal manner do what we can in giving this message of grace and truth to Israel speedily in order that, humanly speaking, we may hasten the day for the coming of King Messiah. The blessings of the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob be upon each reader of this book through the Lord Jesus Christ.