Are you honest, or not? About boycotting Israel
“And the truth is lacking; whoever turns away from evil is
declared insane.” “And God saw it and was displeased, for there is no
righteousness.” Isaiah 59:15
We live in an era unlike anything we have ever experienced
before. Never before has information spread so rapidly. Never before have
opinions spread so easily. Never before has it been possible for a lie to
travel the world as fast as it does now with the internet.
Social media gives everyone an opinion, but it provides no
wisdom.
Nowadays, a slogan is accepted as a fact. A viral message is
called “proof.” A carefully edited video is considered the whole story.
Thousands of people repeat the same story until repetition itself is considered
truth.
But the Torah (Bible) teaches something different. Truth is
not determined by popularity.
Truth is not established by the majority.
Truth does not become untrue because it is unpopular, and a
lie does not become truth because millions repeat the lie. The prophet Isaiah
warned of a society in which moral confusion would become the norm: “Justice is
pushed back, righteousness stands far away; truth has stumbled in the street,
honesty cannot enter.” (Isaiah 59:14)
Truth has stumbled in the street. Not because the truth has
disappeared, but because people no longer wish to seek it.
“Buy the truth and do not sell it.” (Proverbs 23:23) Truth
is something that must be sought, investigated, and cherished. Truth costs
something. It takes time to investigate. It takes humility to admit that you
might be wrong. It takes courage to go against the current. It sometimes costs
friendships, status, or popularity.
Today, emotion has replaced logic. Popularity has replaced
wisdom.
This is exactly where hypocrisy begins.
The Torah provides a striking example through the Ark of the
Covenant. God commanded Moses to cover the Holy Ark inside and out with pure
gold (Exodus 25:11). Jewish tradition explains that the inside and the outside
must correspond. A person’s outward appearance must reflect an inner commitment
to truth and integrity.
The same principle applies to people, journalists,
governments, and nations. It is easy to talk about justice. It is much harder
to put justice into practice.
Hypocrisy
The Dutch government’s policy of boycotting products from
Judea and Samaria. It is presented as a principled stance for law and human
rights. But if those principles were truly universal, they would be applied
equally to every disputed territory in the world. And is the basis of their
information true or false? Or is popularity so important that the truth must be
buried?
No equal principles.
Why is Israel so often singled out, while similar situations
receive little attention?
Whether one agrees or disagrees with Israeli policy is not
the most important thing. It is about the truth. “A false scale is an
abomination to God, but a just weight is pleasing to Him.” (Proverbs 11:1) This
is not only about trade, but also about justice.
When countries apply one standard to Israel and another to
the rest of the world, they violate the principle of equal justice that they
claim to defend.
Opinions are formed based on fifteen-second videos,
emotionally charged headlines, or social media influencers who have never
studied the history they are speaking about. You are tempted to join any group
that is morally fashionable.
The Torah describes this as a dangerous phenomenon.
“You shall not follow the majority in doing evil, nor in a
lawsuit follow the majority to pervert justice.” (Exodus 23:2) The majority can
be mistaken. Public opinion can be manipulated.
A lie that is repeated a thousand times remains a lie.
Humility
It requires humility to say: “Perhaps I do not yet know
enough to have an opinion.”
Before speaking about Israel, the Middle East, or a complex
conflict, you must first ask yourself: Have I studied history? Have I listened
to more than one perspective? Have I verified the facts instead of merely
repeating them? Am I seeking the truth, or am I merely seeking approval?
The greatest danger to society is indifference toward the
truth.
“The lips of truth endure forever, but a lying tongue is
only for a moment.” (Proverbs 12:19).
Anyone can speak fine words about justice, human rights, and international law. The real test is whether those same principles apply equally to everyone. As soon as one country is treated differently from another, justice becomes selective. And selective justice is not justice, but arbitrariness. Or in this case, antisemitism.
Comments