Looking at All Sides of the Coin

Have you seen the new half-shekel coin in Israel? Donald Trump’s face appears on it in raised relief alongside King Cyrus. The image implies a connection between the two world leaders—one an American president in modern times, the other a King of Persia from 2,500 years ago.

Why this connection? After King Cyrus conquered Babylon, he allowed the exiled Jews to return to Jerusalem and even financed the rebuilding of their temple (2 Chr 36:22–23). By doing so, he returned conquered territory to its previous owner. In similar fashion, President Trump’s recent announcement moving the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem sends a strong message confirming Jerusalem as the territory of the Jews and not the Palestinians.

Now the question is: Is this good or bad? The answer is: It depends on whom you ask.

Different Points of View

Orthodox Jews – The coin will not actually circulate as currency, of course. The new Sanhedrin and Mikdash (Temple) Educational Center minted only a thousand of these coins to honor America’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. They hope that with the support of Trump’s administration, they will be able to rebuild their temple—just as Cyrus helped them to do so.

Israeli Government – Prime Minister Netanyahu has recently embraced this comparison between President Trump and the great Persian king who was “appointed” by God to do his will as it concerned Jerusalem. President Trump hosted a VIP reception for Netanyahu on March 5, 2018. This was a large contrast to how President Obama had treated him for the previous eight years. For example, Obama publicly insulted Netanyahu by refusing to see him when he visited the United States in September 2012.

Palestinians – Palestinians are angry that America has broken with long-standing diplomacy and sided with Israel on the Jerusalem question. They say that this undermines the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Iranian Government – The Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) is set to wipe Israel off the map, and also is set to wipe Cyrus from Iran’s history. For the last 39 years, they have been trying to induce hatred towards Israel in the hearts of the people of Iran. They are developing nuclear bombs and intercontinental missiles to bring to reality to their goal of destroying Israel. Their first intended target will be Jerusalem. They have been backing the Palestinian cause and financially supporting Hamas since the 1979 revolution. They have been also trying to downplay the importance of Cyrus and the glorious history of Iran (Persia). Last October, they arrested some youth who were celebrating the birth of Cyrus at his tomb.

Iranian People – Most Iranian are very proud of their history, including King Cyrus. They compare the human rights declaration of Cyrus to their current situation and believe Iran was more civilized then than now.

Even though Iranians are not happy with Trump’s immigration laws restricting them from coming to a country they admire, they hope he will bring down the Islamic government and replace it with a secular democracy—but without war. There is such a great divide and distrust between the people of Iran and the Islamic government that they are furious their money is being used to support Palestinians. Also, after 39 years of government-sponsored rallies to shout “Death to Israel,” the people of Iran are saying, “Tell us again why should we hate the Jews and be against Israel? What have they done to us? Should we hate them just because you are telling us so? We do not trust you. We do not see a reason to hate Israel and the Jews.”

What Is Our Position at Iran Alive?

We at Iran Alive are committed to proclaiming the mind of Christ and the heart of God, as stated in the Bible, into every situation. So we follow the below policy when facing issues like this Cyrus-Trump comparison.

We never take sides in politics – We state the issues and discuss what the Bible has to say about those issues but do not take sides. We are neither pro– nor anti-government. But we are anti-injustice and pro social justice as is clearly commanded in the Bible (Isa 1:17, Zech 7:9–10). Our call is to transform Iran with the power of the gospel. We believe when a society is truly transformed, it will naturally impact the government that rules it.

We show that we value Cyrus and Iran’s glorious history – We take this position first because the Bible has much respect for Cyrus and the past of Iran. Cyrus’s name and birth were predicted in the Bible 150 years before he was born, and the Lord calls him “My Messiah” (Isa 45:1) and “My Shepherd” (Isa 44:28).

Second, we show the Iranians that we, as Muslims who have become Christians, have not forfeited our nationality to embrace a western religion. We want to signal to them that we are even more Iranian than before our conversion, and we have more love and respect for Iran and its past because of what is written in the Bible.

Third, this position is the best way to connect to the heart of millions of Iranians who have rejected Islam and are finding their national identity not in Islam but in Cyrus and the Persian empire. That is why for the Persian New Year week, we had a TV set that resembled Persepolis (see picture).

We promote Love and Unity among nations and races–One of our goals is to help Muslim background believers to get rid of any hatred they have toward other nations. If they have any leftover hatred toward the Jews, we want to help them get rid of that. We teach them that since “God so loved the world” (Jn 3:16), we must also love all nations and races. On the Israeli-Palestinian issue, we state, “God loves both Israelis and the Palestinians. He loves both the Jews and Arabs and wants both sides to be saved.”

During my live broadcasts, I occasionally bring on a Jewish Christian, an Arab Christian, an Indian Christian, a black Christian, or a white American Christian for this reason, so they might teach our viewers to have the heart of God, to love all people and desire that all come to salvation.

I don’t know if God is using or will use President Trump as he did King Cyrus. That question in one for future history books to answer. But I do know Iran is turning to Christ in record numbers, and Iran will become a light to the entire Middle East as these Muslim background believers love their former enemies.

What people group is hard for you to love? I pray you reach out to them with the love of Christ today.

Related articles:

Associated Press. “Israeli Group Mints Coin Bearing Trump’s Image.” CBS News, February 28, 2018. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israel-trump-coin-honours-recognition-jerusalem-as-capital/.

Ravid, Barak, and Natasha Mozgovaya. “White House Declines Netanyahu Request to Meet With Obama.” Haaretz, September 11, 2012. https://www.haaretz.com/white-house-no-netanyahu-obama-meeting-1.5160303.

Brennan, David. “Israeli Group Mints New Trump Coin to Honor U.S. Embassy’s Move to Jerusalem.” Newsweek, February 28, 2018. http://www.newsweek.com/trumpcoin-israeli-group-mints-new-coin-honor-us-embassy-move-823981.

“Remarks by President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel Before Bilateral Meeting.” The White House. Accessed March 27, 2018. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-prime-minister-netanyahu-israel-bilateral-meeting-2/.

Wadhams, Nick. “U.S. Speeds Up Timetable for Moving Embassy to Jerusalem.” Time, February 24, 2018. http://time.com/5174043/us-embassy-jerusalem-may/.