Rachel Weeps, Governments Strive, but the Promise Prevails: A Theological Reflection on Israel, Power, and the Firstborn

by Dave Miller

You live in a world where governments are doing more than governing—they’re shaping. They’re not just enforcing laws; they’re forming identity, dictating morality, and offering a counterfeit sense of salvation. Whether you’ve noticed it or not, you’re being invited—maybe even pressured—to treat the state as a god.

But that was never its role.

If you believe in limited government, not just as a political position but as a biblical principle, then you already sense the tension. The proper role of government, from a biblical perspective, is clear: to stop evil in its tracks so that people are free to shape what is good. Government exists to preserve space for flourishing—it is not the architect of flourishing itself.

When government goes beyond that mandate, it inevitably begins to replace the institutions that were always meant to shape society: the family, the church, and the covenant community. And when those collapse, the vacuum is filled by the state.

This is what you are witnessing now. The state has become the primary institution of formation—not just of law, but of morality, identity, and purpose. In doing so, it has become the popular expression of functional atheism. When people no longer trust the church, the family, or their neighbors, they turn to the state not just for governance, but for salvation.

Rachel Still Weeps: Old Creation Brokenness and the Longing for Redemption

In Jeremiah 31, you hear a lament echo through history: “A voice is heard in Ramah—Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing to be comforted.” Rachel’s cry is more than a moment of sorrow; it is the grief of a disintegrated people, a nation fractured by idolatry, exile, and the loss of covenant purpose.

Matthew 2 echoes this passage during Herod’s slaughter of the innocents, showing you that political power often turns violent when threatened by divine promise. But Matthew doesn’t quote Jeremiah only to make you weep—he quotes it to remind you of hope. Because Jeremiah 31 doesn’t end in sorrow—it points toward restoration, toward a new covenant, and toward the coming of the one true King.

Rachel weeps because the old systems have failed. But into her sorrow is born the child who will not.

Don’t Reduce Israel to a Political Entity

In a time when modern political Israel dominates headlines and sparks intense debate, it’s easy to forget the theological meaning of Israel. The biblical Israel was not merely a nation-state, but a covenant people formed by God to bless the world.

Yes, God made specific promises to Abraham and his descendants.

Yes, those promises are real and significant.

But as the New Testament makes clear, the true fulfillment of those promises is found in Jesus Christ.

Christians are not replacing Israel—they are grafted in (Romans 11). The church is not a new ethnicity, but a new humanity. And modern Israel, while significant, is not the center of God’s redemptive plan—Jesus is.

So don’t idolize modern Israel, and don’t ignore it either. Understand it within the full biblical story. Let Rachel’s weeping tune your heart to the deeper cry of all creation—for restoration, not just of land or lineage, but of life itself.

Islam, Judaism, and the Firstborn Struggle

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East is not just geopolitical—it is theological. It echoes a very old question: Who is the true heir of Abraham? Is it Isaac or Ishmael? Is Sarah the mother of the promise, or is Hagar?

Judaism and Islam both continue to struggle over firstborn status in the old creation. This is a battle rooted in law, lineage, and legitimacy. It plays out in real-world politics, borders, and bloodshed. But at its core, it is a question of power and position.

And that’s the tragedy—because when power is the point, purpose is lost. And when purpose is lost, the result is chaos.

Old creation arguments can never produce new creation peace.

Jesus: The Firstborn of the New Creation

Enter Jesus—not just as a child of Abraham, but as the child of promise. Not only born into the old creation, but raised as the firstborn of the new creation.

He did what no other “firstborn” could do: He used His power not to dominate, but to redeem. He loved the Father. He loved His neighbor. He laid down His life and rose again—not to continue the power games of empire, but to inaugurate a new kingdom.

He now has all authority in heaven and on earth. And in His hands, power and position finally find their purpose: to bring flourishing to all who believe.

This is why the gospel is not about power over others, but peace for all people. In Christ, you are no longer defined by your ethnicity, your political status, or even who your mother is—because now, by faith, you know who your Father is. The old creation asked, “Are you from Hagar or Sarah?” But in the new creation, all who are in Christ have one Father: the Creator, Owner, and Keeper of the cosmos. You are a co-heirs of the promise, united by faith with the true heir, the Son, Jesus the Christ. 

From Old Creation Wars to New Creation Peace

The fight over the firstborn will continue in the old world. It will manifest as politics, conflict, nationalism, and even religious war. But you, as a follower of Jesus, are no longer a participant in that story. You’ve been called into a better one.

You belong to the kingdom that doesn’t fight for power but flows from resurrection.

You belong to the family that doesn’t fight over inheritance but shares it freely.

You belong to the One who, by laying down His life, gained the name above all names.

So What Should You Do?

• Don’t let the state become your god.

  
  

• Don’t expect the state to take your responsibilities.

  
  

• Don’t mistake political Israel for redemptive Israel.

  
  

• Don’t get caught in old creation categories of oppressor and oppressed.

  
  
  
  

• Do live as a child of promise.

  
  

• Do work, give, and shape the relationships around you through responsibility and love.

  
  

• Do proclaim peace under the reign of the resurrected King.

  
  

• Do believe that Jesus is the final answer for Jew and Gentile alike.

  
  

Rachel still weeps, but Hope has come. And when He returns, the government will be on His shoulders—and His peace will have no end.

Until then, live in union with the true Firstborn, and let His kingdom shape your life, your politics, and your hope, while you do as he did, use your freedom on purpose, to bless because you are blessed.