Is Cyrus turning Judas?

As Trump ‘calls the shots’ over Iran, Israel is urged to trust in the Lord, not men

While complicated negotiations with Iran over a ceasefire deal with the US are still not yet finalised, it’s difficult to know quite how to interpret it all. Except that it looks a lot like President Trump is throwing Israel under the bus.

The man who had appeared to be a modern-day Cyrus figure is turning out to be a potential Judas, leaving Israel at the mercy of terrorists while ensuring the safe passage of oil.

He is reported to have told journalists, “I call the shots, not him,” with reference to his erstwhile ally Bibi Netanyahu. But such arrogance will be laughed at by the God who still sees Israel as the apple of His eye because, at the end of the day, it is the Lord of heaven and earth who is in control and who keeps watching over His Word to see that it comes to pass.

It’s not so much that Israel needs America as the other way around.

Mr Trump has apparently started something he refuses to finish. The truth, however, is that it’s not so much that Israel needs America as the other way around, as US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has intimated.¹

Israel as the centre of world affairs

Israel is on the frontline of the battle for Judeo-Christian (i.e. Western) civilisation, with American soldiers not yet involved on the ground. And whether they reach nuclear bomb capability or not, Iran remains determined to wipe out the Jewish state. Their proxy, Hezbollah, keeps firing towards that end from Lebanon, but the President wants Israel to meekly lay down their arms.

It’s very naïve to think Iran’s current leaders are suddenly being reasonable and with good intentions; the US leader should heed the wise advice Winston Churchill once offered to appeasers in our Parliament that 'you cannot negotiate with the devil'.

The US leader should heed the wise advice Winston Churchill once offered to appeasers in our Parliament that 'you cannot negotiate with the devil'.

Meanwhile, sensing our weakness, no doubt, the Russians have fired a warning shot at a British yacht in the English Channel while our leaders are too busy navel-gazing to notice the urgent need for a viable navy. (Having said that, new Defence Secretary, Dan Jarvis, is a supporter of Israel, so watch this space.) For it is weak leaders, pandering to left-wing wokery, who have helped the likes of Hamas and Hezbollah to survive.

The recognition of a Palestinian state by Britain and other leading nations amounts to a commitment to dividing the land God has given to His ancient people. I am reminded of a prophecy given by the late Lance Lambert in 2010 to the effect that “devastating judgment” would be unleashed on nations pursuing such a plan.

“Their economies would fail, their financial system would break down, and even their climate would fail them,” he declared, adding: “Old and powerful nations will become as if they are Third World countries, and the likes of China and India would arise to take their place.”

Moreover, it was “arrogance” to think that God’s eternal promises could be defied. But amidst all this shaking, two peoples were not to fear – “the true and living Church and Israel”.

But amidst all this shaking, two peoples were not to fear – “the true and living Church and Israel”.

As Christian Friends of Israel spokesman David Soakell has pointed out, it was Cairo-born Yasser Arafat who first formed the notion of a Palestinian state, even receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. Yet the irony of this was his declaring that “Peace for us [the Arabs] means the destruction of Israel. We are preparing for an all-out war, a war which will last for generations.”²

David adds that “unless the head is cut off the snake, the deathly poisonous bite will remain”, adding that the notion and formation of a Palestinian state was the greatest marketing stunt of the twentieth century.

Land in exchange for peace?

Meanwhile the long-running, and unprovoked, Hamas aggression from Gaza – culminating in the barbaric massacre of October 7th, 2023 – was the ‘peace offering’ from those, including America, who pressured Israel into withdrawing from the strip in 2005. ‘Land for peace’, they were assured. Give away some of what little land you have, and conflict will cease. How much more of this kind of ‘peace’ can the Jewish people afford?

We in the West should hang our heads in shame over our failure to stand foursquare with Israel, without whom we would never have received the gospel of peace that Jesus brought to the world. It’s time to repent of our shocking betrayal, or we may have to face the certain judgment of the God who has said: “In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land.” (Joel 3:1f)

In the meantime, Israel may well end up alone... But the Lord will be her helper.

In the meantime, Israel may well end up alone – even without American support as the prophet Ezekiel suggests (see chapters 38 & 39) when all the nations come against her. But the Lord will be her helper.

As the Israelites of old were counselled: “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” (2 Chronicles 20:15)

Charles Gardner

Notes
¹United with Israel, June 17th, 2026
²CFI’s Watching Over Zion report, May 21st, 2026

^{Image from Library of Congress, on unsplash.com}