Israel Books

Zev Vilnay was a great lover of the land of Israel. He knew every pathway and corner of the land. His descriptions of it are filled with insight and understanding .The work is a pleasure to read. I do not know how up-to- date this particular edition is but I still go back, from time to time and reread an old edition I have in order to learn about a certain place I think to visit. A first- rate work by a very exceptional person, one of that remarkable generation that helped bring the Jewish state into existence.

This is the best hands-on guidebook to Israel I have found. Vilnay's thoroughness is commendable. Every highway in Israel is described in accurate detail so you know exactly what you are looking at and where you are. For example: Heading North from Acco on the Acco-Nahariyya Road, 1.2 km, you see the remains of a Turkish aqueduct built in the 17th century, followed by a grove of eucalyptus trees planted in the 1930's...Both of these are illustrated for good measure. The walking descriptions are just as detailed: In Acco, Turn up Fishmonger's Alley, on the fourth shop on the right, ask the shopkeeper to show you the Crusader seal on the wall behind his wares...There are many historical hikes described in the same accurate detail. This book's compact size makes it easy to bring along when you travel. Unlike other guidebooks there are no photographs, only illustrations, but they are very detailed and correct. Also, the print is quite small. But that is because there is so much information packed into this book. Vilnay knew the Land of Israel like no one else. Though he has passed on, his encyclopedic knowledge and love of the land is presented at your fingertips in this gem.

Darkly humorous, cynical, horrific and melancholy, Melville's later works are the capstone to the author's deepening discontent with his America. The vision here can be frustrating: Melville conjures up the most painful, soul-searching mysteries, and then refuses to knot them up with tidy solutions. Instead, Melville deepens the moral ambiguity that seeped through the skin of the transitional Moby Dick in full-length works like Pierre and Billy Budd, Sailor. And the shorter works--among them The Piazza Tales, Benito Cereno, and Bartleby the Scrivener--are imbued with such a longing for any kind of graspable meaning, that their readers, like their characters, find themselves in a ponderous state of shock. The human condition, Melville seems to say, is one of isolation, cast adrift, searching alone for a truth that is, and always will be, inscrutable.

If you think that you can't read classic American Literature because it's all so big and intimidating (i.e., Moby Dick) think again. Some of the short stories in this collection of Melville's "other" work are incredibly well-written insights into human nature. (As is Moby Dick, but I digress).

Billy Budd's encounter with "justice," Bartleby's statement that he would "prefer not", Benito Cerino's exploration of slavery-- these tales are not to be missed. You should read this book as a starter, then move on to the BIG OLD white whale.

This is an essentially accurate and sympathetic book. Chafets for many years was a journalist at the 'Jerusalem Report' and followed what was happening in Israel very closely. He before that served as an Advisor to Prime Minister Begin. He is a writer who makes an effort to meet with people from all walks of life, escape the common cliches of the media, and provide his own special perspective.
He provides an interesting look at Israeli society as it appeared nearly two decades ago.

This book was written in 1986 and the author does a good job in describing Israel at that time.

One interesting question Chafets raises is this: given that anti-Semitism is irrational, ought Israelis view the Arab war against them as basically irrational or as basically a rational dispute over territory (or maybe a dispute between two competing nationalisms).

Chafets calls the first approach "emotionalist" and the second "rationalist." I think that's kind of funny. Even Chafets admits that the latter group tends to view Israel as largely to blame for Arab aggression. Is that really rational?

In my opinion, the German takeover of Czechoslovakia in the 1930s was not a battle of competing nationalisms. The Czechs had no designs on Germany. Similarly, the Israelis have no designs on Saudi Arabia, or any other Arab lands. Their crime is to want to keep their own land, and their reason is because they can't defend their rights without it.

The Arab war on Israel does not make sense as a dispute over territory either. The Arabs are land-rich! They could have had every inch of Israel, with Jewish approval, had they been willing to abide Jewish rights there. But they weren't willing to do that. Now, they want to find a way to destroy Jewish rights, and that means finding an excuse, any excuse to destroy Israel. Does that make me an "emotionalist?" Well, no. I'm just being rational. Since I'm not an Arab or Israeli, that ought to be the end of it. But I'm writing about this because I support truth and scholarship. And in this war, I've seen the opponents of Israel behave in a nearly uniform anti-scholarly and dishonest manner.

In short, the "emotionalists" are right. Those who wanted to deprive Jews of human rights did not have enough fun in the last ten or fifteen centuries. Not even World War Two was good enough to satisfy them. Now they want more, and they are happy to sacrifice academic standards, justice, and anything else that gets in their way.

Chafets does not come to this conclusion at all. Instead, he merely points out that Israeli attitudes are ambivalent. But there are a couple of places where I think what Chafets says, in all sincerity, ought to be reflected upon. For example, he says that when terrorists murdered hostages at Maalot, "the chances of Israel negotiating with Yasir Arafat ended for good."

Obviously, Israel got pressured into negotiating with Arafat anyway. And upon reflection, most of us can see that this was an error. Maybe upon further reflection, most of us can see that in the future, terrorized nations may be far less likely to negotiate with thugs such as Arafat.

I think Chafets is good at describing Israel, and he seems to give us a reasonable picture of the place. I recommend this book.

The reader is provided with what can only be described as a scrupulously documented and indispensable reference, that is a must read for any individual interested in a complete history of Palestine - especially in relation to the period dating from the Muslim conquest until that of the Crusaders.

Drawing on many historic Muslim, Christian and Jewish sources/texts/references, this study proceeds to reveal how the Muslim conquest of Palestine began before the death of Muhammad and how it subsequently subdued the population of Jews and Christians.

For the purposes of a review, it is impossible to refer to all the issues covered in a study of this depth and magnitude that spans nearly 1,000 pages, so for those interested I shall select only a few.

Early in this work, brief reference is provided to the events surrounding the Jewish revolt against Roman rule which culminated in 135AD with the "Diaspora", the renaming of the Jewish homeland as Syria Palestina (eventually anglicised into `Palestine') and the renaming of Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina..

The book documents how the period AD135 until AD638 saw the enforced separation of the Jews from Jerusalem and their most Holy site. Reference also being made to how this purportedly formed the integral basis of the convictions held by the "early Church Fathers" which resulted in so much anti-Semitism (hatred of the Jews).

At the time of the Muslim conquest the book illustrates how, despite the Diaspora, the majority of the population was indeed Jewish who referred to the Land as al-Sham (the Samaritans also being inclusive in this majority). The Jewish population itself is shown in this work, to not only be "survivors from the revolt against the Romans", but also to consist of the "direct descendants" of the generations of Jews who had lived there since the days of Joshua bin Nun.

In other words, a continual Jewish presence spanning some 2,000 years prior to the Islamic conquest.

The book also illustrates how the Jewish connection with the Temple Mount , Moses, David and Solomon was present in the minds of the Muslims during the conquests and that the prior injunction preventing Jewish access to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount (which had been used as a rubbish dump) was even initially revoked by the Muslims. Having said this, the book refers to some conflicting/contradictory information in relation to these issues.

The Muslim conquest of Palestine is described as opening an entirely "new page" in Palestine's history, amid a period that is shown to witness almost "unceasing warfare". The study stressing that the goal during the initial phases of the Islamic invasion of Palestine was to compel the nomadic tribes around the border to accept Islam and consolidate around Muhammad. The study citing numerous campaigns that are described as being "cruel" and accompanied by "rebuke and chastisement".

The reader is provided with references throughout. Having access to such detailed historical credentials it is difficult to weigh any Arab/Islamic/Palestinian claim to this land against that of the Jews who preceded them. The land being shown in this study to have been systematically and violently "de-populated" through Jihads, and then re-populated with Muslims/Arabs etc.. The Jewish and Christian populations described herein shown to have been subjected to the regulations imposed on the non-Muslims that were "vanquished" by jihad ("holy war") during which many Churches and Synagogues are cited as having been destroying by the invading tribes.

Indeed, the book provides some attention to the aforementioned "dhimmi" status afforded the non-Muslims and the adverse affects imposed upon their lives.

Amongst the outward manifestations detailed herein that are described as portraying the purported inferiority and humiliation suffered by non-Muslims, is the enforced wearing of distinguishing yellow marks by Jews and blue by Christians. The reader is provided with an ominous foretaste of what awaited the Jews in the 20th Century during the Holocaust.

The book culminates in the effects upon the population of Palestine, including the slaughter of the Jews, during the ensuing "Crusades".

Might I also respectfully recommend the following books to anyone interested in a detailed history pertaining to the region.

"Empires Of The Sands; The Struggle for Mastery in the Middle East, 1789 - 1923" by Inari & Efraim Karsh.
"From Time Immemorial; The Origins of the Arab - Jewish Conflict Over Palestine" by Joan Peters.
"A Peace To End All Peace; The Inside Story of the Fight for Middle East Peace" by David Fromkin.
"The Palestine War 1948" by Efraim Karsh.

Thank you for your time.

Middle East scholars have lauded "A History of Palestine, 634-1099" as the most comprehensive historiography of Palestine from the initial Arab Muslim conquests, until the arrival of the Crusaders in 1099. Remarkably, despite the constraints of academic annotation, and the uncertainties of translation (i.e., from Hebrew to English), Professor Gil's narrative is eminently readable for the non-professional student of history. Through the clear, dispassionate presentation of a rich profusion of data, he captures the stark, unromantic reality of Muslim ruled Palestine during this 465-year period.

Professor Gil begins with a survey of events before the Arab Muslim invasion. He also notes the singular centrality that Palestine occupied in the mind of its pre-Islamic Jewish inhabitants, who referred to the land as "al-Sham". Indeed, as Gil observes, the sizable Jewish population in Palestine (who formed a majority of its inhabitants, when grouped with the Samaritans) at the dawn of the Arab Muslim conquest were "..the direct descendants of the generations of Jews who had lived there since the days of Joshua bin Nun, in other words for some 2000 years..". The 465-year period carefully surveyed by Gil comprises the following stages: the Arab Muslim conquest and establishment, from 634 to 661; the Umayyad-Damascene rule, from 661 until 750; the Abbasid-Baghdadian rule, from 750 through 878; Turco-Egyptian rule- Tulunids and Ikshidids- from 878 until 970- "interrupted" by Abbasid-Baghdadian rule again, between 905 and 930; nearly two generations of war including numerous participants, the dominant party being the Fatimids, from 970 through 1030; just over 40-years of Fatimid-Egyptian rule, between 1030 and 1071; and a generation of Turkish rule encompassing most of Palestine, from 1071 until 1099.

Gil offers a particularly revealing assessment of dhimmitude (i.e., the regulations imposed on the non-Muslims vanquished by jihad), and its adverse impact on these conquered, indigenous peoples, in chapter 3 pages, pages 139 to 161. For example, excessive, arbitrarily imposed taxation in the first quarter of the 11th century lead to the destitution, imprisonment, torture, and death of many Jews living in Jerusalem. However, the clearest outward manifestations of this imposed inferiority and humiliation were the prohibitions regarding dhimmi dress "codes", and the demands that distinguishing signs be placed on the entrances of dhimmi houses. During the Abbasid caliphates of Harun al-Rashid (786-809) and al-Mutawwakil (847-861), Jews and Christians were required to wear yellow ( as patches attached to their garments, or hats). Later, to differentiate further between Christians and Jews, the Christians were required to wear blue. Finally, in 850, consistent with Koranic verses and hadith (sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad) associating them with Satan and Hell, al-Mutawwakil decreed that Jews and Christians attach wooden images of devils to the doors of their homes to distinguish them from the homes of Muslims.

Near the end of his extensive, scrupulously documented presentation, Gil offers this sobering assessment: "..These facts do not call for much interpretation; together they simply form a picture of almost unceasing insecurity, of endless rebellions and wars, of upheavals and instability..".

This brilliantly researched piece is true history at its best. Meticulously well done it is the only good history of the 1948 war, a masterpiece that is unfortunately only half completed. It details struggles, debates, raids and ambushes in the most honest and fair manner, using concrete evidence without bias and without politics. This book should be required reading for the Israeli-Arab conflict, however it is often brushed over to more easy to read shorter histories of the 1948 war. However despite this many volumed length of the project this is a grasping and exciting read, drawing on military and political topics, discussing minorities and often unheard of events. All students of the middle east and Israel and military history will enjoy this.

Volume II covers the period between November 29th, 1947 the partition resolution and the end of the Mandate, April 15th 1948.

Seth J. Frantzman

This brilliantly researched piece is true history at its best. Meticulously well done it is the only good history of the 1948 war, a masterpiece that is unfortunately only half completed. It details struggles, debates, raids and ambushes in the most honest and fair manner, using concrete evidence without bias and without politics. This book should be required reading for the Israeli-Arab conflict, however it is often brushed over to more easy to read shorter histories of the 1948 war. However despite this many volumed length of the project this is a grasping and exciting read, drawing on military and political topics, discussing minorities and often unheard of events. All students of the middle east and Israel and military history will enjoy this.

Volume I looks into the history, the 1936 rebellion, the organizations, and of course most importantly the Haganah intelligence efforts. It also examines the role of Ben-Gurion as leaders.

Seth J. Frantzman

Uri Milstein's History of the War of Independence (volumes 1-3 have been translated into English from Hebrew) reveals that while the Yishuv was prepared to defend itself against Arab riots and disturbances, the Hagana was forced to re-organize itself for conventional war even as the war was beginning. A reader can derive from this that the Yishuv won the war mainly because the Palestinian Arabs and Arab states were even less prepared and less organized than the Yishuv's military forces. Milstein explains that Ben-Gurion had expected to have another few years to train and arm the Yishuv before the war began, and had not wanted to rely on the Haganah (trying to set up a "shadow staff" of British-trained officers). Upon taking the defence portfolio, Ben-Gurion sought to come to an understanding of the Haganah's inner workings by conducting one-one-one interviews with Haganah leaders in a six-month "seminar." These books are very helpful for understanding the events of the war, Ben-Gurion's personality as a politician and military leader (strengths and weaknesses) and the relationship Ben-Gurion had with the Haganah and Palmah leaders. I would suggest that these books be read in conjunction with Benny Morris's "The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem" and "Israel's Border Wars", Avi Shlaim's "Collusion Across the Jordan," and Tom Segev's "1949: The New Israelis."

I put the cd into my computer and was just amazed at what I saw. The pictures and videos of Israel were beautiful the music was inspiring and it was very educational. Pastors, teachers, and everyone who have an interest in Israel would benifit from this Holy Land Experience!

I have never in my life seen such an empressive depiction of the Holy Land! Everything about the program is excellently done. It's easy to use, the music is inspiring, the videos, pictures, and descriptions give you a real sense of Israel and its significance to Christians. I would encourage anyone interested in Israel to buy this product.

Very well illustrated and explained. Rabbi Chiam Richman is the spokesperson for Temple Mount Institute. When their site is cross referenced w/ this book, even more can be learned about the Temple and the accoutrements that are being created and collected for the institution of Temple worship when its rebuilt.

One of the great guides and teachers about the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and the worship done in it, Chaim Richman presents here an illustrated guide to it. This is a very powerful and clear depiction of the Temple, and should give the reader a surer physical sense of how the Temple looked. It can also be of help to real 'learners' better picture what they are learning about.
A highly recommended work.

I picked up this book and could not put it down, great read lots of interesting content. I would suggest buying some for gifts.

This is an excellent short book covering a topic I had always taken for granted: but jammed packed with political, historical, biblical, archeological connections of the Jewish people to the Land going back 3000 years, and meticulously documented and footnoted. I think this book could be a worthwhile text, especially for students- it is very factual, laying out the evidence. In today's media, which whitewashes, ignores and is ignorant of the indisputable and continuous connection of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel- which
G-d promised to them in perpetuity- this is a critical text. The Jewish people were there (and always remained)more than a thousand years before Christians and a millenium and a half before Muslims (whose religion was not even founded until the 7th Century). To not recognize this is to deny the historical record. Period. Jerry Verlin does a great job in telling this story in amazing detail.

This book is about the history of modern Zionism, from the late nineteenth century until the declaration of statehood in 1948. The first half of the book takes us through the First Aliyah (including some interesting material about the "Ugandan option"), the Second Aliyah, and World War One. I think that the significance of the misadventures of the Jewish community during World War One is sometimes overlooked by those who discuss the history of Israel, so this is an important section.

The rest of the book takes us through the 1930s, World War Two, and the postwar struggle for independence. This is a topic that has been discussed in a huge number of other books, many of them extremely political in nature. Stein simply is not able in this summary to deal with all the detailed issues here, but I think he does a good job of covering the major events. Some people have praised the balance the author has shown in this book, but Stein gets plenty of opportunities to let us know his opinions.

I like this book and I think it is an excellent introduction to the subject. For a summary, this book is surprisingly thorough, and I think Stein ought to be commended for writing it.

Leslie Stein, a Senior Research Fellow at Macquarie University in Sydney Australia, has given us a highly readable work of impeccable scholarship. Noting that most studies of Israel focus on post-1948 developments, Stein has filled the need for a study of the creation of Israel from its modern origins up to the achieving of Statehood in 1948.

Reading this book is somewhat like reading a mystery where you already know the ending but have never read the plot. The first and middle chapters are a fascinating background, and then the inevitable conclusion unfolds in the last two chapters with an onrush of climactic action. At many points the reader wonders how, given all the obstacles it faced, could Israel have emerged as a modern State? This is the drama that Leslie Stein relates.

One could argue that had it not been for Russian anti-Semitism there would have been no Zionist movement and no subsequent State of Israel. It was the Russian pogroms, oppression and massacres of mid-19th Century that drove Jews out as refugees, looking for a place to live in peace. And then there was the venality and corruption of the Turkish Ottoman officials who took bribes to allow Jews to become lawful residents in Palestine with permission to purchase land. Then later, more persecution in Poland and more refugees. And so on.

Throughout the 1800's, all across Europe, Eastern Europe and Russia there were a number of thinkers and writers who promoted establishing a Jewish homeland. But the Zionist movement was given its greatest inspiration by the Herculean efforts of one charismatic person, Theodor Herzl. He was an intellectual, a diplomat and tireless lobbyist for a Jewish homeland. He traveled non-stop to all the heads of State of every country that would receive him to press his agenda, and literally worked himself to death at age forty-four in 1904. Herzel's prophetic vision of the Jewish State was one founded on capitalism and democracy - not theocracy.

It is difficult to review this outstanding book without going into an over abundance of detail, so I will describe just three aspects of Israel's history that remain vivid in my mind:

First are the physical hardships that faced the early settlers in the 1800's. The land was unforgiving. For a "promised land" this was one of the most Godforsaken places on the planet. The photographs from the Zionist archives show the bleakness of the landscape. There are many vivid sketches and photos that accompany the text. For instance page 160 shows women wearing long dresses, outdoors on a hillside, pounding rocks for road construction. (The question comes to mind, why are there no Arab photos of women pounding rocks for road construction? Or more generally, why are there no Arab photos of anything?)

Second are the amazing accomplishments of this small band of devoted people under the most adverse and trying conditions. Through unrelenting physical and intellectual effort by the 1940's Israel had plants producing industrial machinery, automobile parts, textiles, agricultural equipment, medical and electrical instruments, chemical and pharmaceutical products, shipbuilding, a diamond polishing industry and an oil refinery. In many individual industries progress was phenomenal. (At this stage the Arabs had not yet learned how to crush rocks, but were throwing them.)

Third was the terrible treatment the Jews received at the hands of Great Britain in the run-up to and during WWII. The ideology of German fascism had permeated the Arab countries due to its appeal of anti-Semitism. There was active collaboration of the Arabs with the Nazis. Britain was afraid the Arab countries would enter the war on the side of the fascists and cut off access to Middle Eastern oil so they took an anti-Israel stance.

Britain did everything it could to prevent Jews from immigrating to Israel. At times there was open warfare by Britain against the Jews in Israel who were trying to smuggle in as many refugees as possible to save them from the death camps in Germany. Then, in February 1945 just as the war was drawing to a close, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and Saudi-Arabia declared war on Germany so they could become eligible for UN membership. This was a dark period in the history of England.

Finally on May 14, 1948 Israel announced its Statehood and Declaration of Independence. President Truman of the U.S. immediately recognized Israel as an independent State. This action by Truman no doubt helped fortify the resolve of Israel, when on the following day it faced the invading armies of Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Transjordan. Israel did not succumb to this invasion. It went on to gather millions of Jewish exiles over the years, and to become a modern, democratic, industrial state. But, as Stein concludes, "it has yet to enjoy the benefits of a peaceful existence that so many other countries take for granted."

After extensive biblical and historical research, Adam Rutherford is convinced the people of Iceland are primarily descended from the tribe of Benjamin. He points out that Benjamin means "light bearer," and as such they were the first to bring the Gospel of Christ even as far as Britain in the 1st century. According to biblical prophecy, they will also have an important responsibility in the end-times. You can't read this book without giving glory to God for His Sovereignty and faithfulness on behalf of this nation. Excellent! I couldn't put it down!

Mr. Rutherford wrote this wonderful little book in 1937 when he became convinced after throughly researching the subject that Iceland is strongly represented by the descendants of the Tribe of Benjamin.

He presents what he believes to be the Scriptural parallels between the two. His basic scripture passage for his theory is:

"They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the Lord, they shall cry aloud from the sea. Wherefore glorify ye the Lord in the fires, even the name of the Lord God of Israel in the isles of the sea. From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous." (Isaiah 24: 14-16. English Bible)

Mr. Rutherford stipulates that three particulars are given concerning this place from which songs and thanksgiving are to be heard in the midst of a troubled world:
The place is insular, for the sons of praise are stated to rise"from the sea", "from the isles of the sea". The Old Testament of course was written in Hebrew, but the Hebrew word for"sea" and for "west" is the same, namely "yom". As there are no islands of any consequence that are not in the sea, the proper translation is , "isles of the west". The only important islands in the west are the British Isles and Iceland, but the following considerations show that one of these islands in particular is referred to in the first place, and ultimately incite the inhabitants of the other isles to sing also.
These insular people are described in prophecy as living amidst fires. In our world the only fires of nature that we know of are volcanoes, and Iceland is the only one of these islands that have active volcanoes. Not only so, but in proportion to its size, Iceland contains more volcanoes than any other country in the world. In modern times, the tremendous outpourings of white-hot lava in Iceland are unexampled anywhere else in the world. As comparatively recently as 1783 the great Laki Craters threw out a lava stream about 45 miles in length and 15 miles in breadth. Stefan Stefansson in his book on "Iceland" says that this is "by far the greatest on record" and "unparalleled on the earth in historic times." So far as is known this is the biggest fire the world has ever seen since man was upon the earth. The whole country of Iceland was formed by fire; it owes its existence entirely to volcanic action, and the many geysers and hot springs to be found all over the island are connected with the volcanic fires below. Iceland is known to Europeans as "The Land of Fire". Truly the Icelandic nation has lived amidst fires!
The prophecy locates this insular country as being in "the uttermost part of the earth" or as the ancients said, the "ultima thule". The expression was at one time applied in a general way to the far north, but later became localised to Iceland. Sir Richard Burton has written a work of two large volumes entitled Ultima Thule: this work is a description of Iceland, which this author calls "The Canaan of the North". Iceland is certainly at "the uttermost part of the earth," for beyond it there is nothing but the ice-bound Polar Sea. The north coast of Iceland touches the Arctic Circle.
Although a small book, it contains a rich supply of well-researched facts combined with Scriptural passages to help the author prove his point that Iceland is truly one of the remarkable countries in the world. It is the author's conviction that this great destiny of Iceland will prove to be a blessing not only to the Icelanders themselves but also to the kindred Scandinavian, Anglo-Saxon and Celtic peoples.