Fire Not Water: God’s Mysterious Command for the Passover Sacrifice

Former Israeli Supreme Court Chief Justice Aharon Barak recently sounded an alarming warning about Israel’s future. “The main issue facing Israeli society is the ‘eighth front’—the deep rift among Israelis themselves. This divide is worsening, and I fear it will be like a train going off the rails, spiraling into an abyss and leading to civil war,” Barak said in an interview with Ynetnews. His warning comes as tensions escalate over the dismissal of the Shin Bet chief and ongoing investigations involving the Prime Minister’s office. These developments, according to Barak, threaten to tear Israeli society apart at a time when unity is most needed.

Is Israel really headed towards civil war? Are the Jewish people truly on the brink of internal collapse, as Barak and others suggest?

The Bible offers us clear insight through God’s instructions for the Passover sacrifice:

Why did God insist on roasting rather than boiling? The difference reveals everything about how God forms His people. When meat is boiled, it absorbs water, becoming softer until it eventually falls apart, with fibers separating and structure dissolving. But roasting does the opposite—fire draws out excess moisture, concentrating the meat’s essence and creating a firm exterior that holds everything together.

This wasn’t merely a cooking instruction but a demonstration of how God fashioned Israel as a nation. The Israelites weren’t softened and dissolved by their Egyptian experience—they were hardened and strengthened by it. The fire of slavery, rather than weakening them, forged them into a cohesive people. Each challenge, each brick laid, each Egyptian decree against them only served to remove what was unnecessary and strengthen what was essential. By the time of the Exodus, Israel had been roasted by fire, not dissolved by water.

This biblical principle explains why today’s warnings of civil war are fundamentally misguided. The 18 months of war since Hamas’s October 7 attack have not weakened Israel but strengthened it. Like meat in fire, Israeli society has been “roasted” by this conflict—drawing together, concentrating its essence, and hardening its resolve. Far from dividing the nation, the war has burned away superficial disagreements and revealed the unshakable core of Jewish identity and commitment to survival. Despite media narratives and warnings from figures like Barak, Israeli society stands more united around its core values and identity than before the war began.

Rabbi Haggai London explains this reality in stark demographic terms: “Jewish society in the State of Israel consists, on one hand, of seven million Jews who share a common denominator of nationalism and traditionalism to varying degrees. And on the other hand – a few tens of thousands of progressives who have decided that ‘the country has been stolen from them.'”

A civil war requires two roughly equal sides. Israel doesn’t have that. What it has instead is an overwhelming majority that believes in the Jewish state, supports its security needs, and understands its historical mission—and a small but vocal minority that dominates media coverage and foreign perceptions.

The proof is in what happens during crises. When Hamas attacked on October 7th, reservists reported for duty at rates exceeding 100%. Civilian volunteers flooded south to help evacuate communities and north to support farmers. Food banks overflowed with donations. These aren’t the actions of a society on the brink of civil war—they’re the behaviors of a people united by shared values and common purpose.

Israel has been forged through fire throughout its history. The Egyptian slavery, the desert wandering, the wars of conquest, the exile, the Holocaust, and the wars since 1948 have all served as the roasting fire that strengthens rather than dissolves. Each challenge has removed what’s unnecessary and concentrated what’s essential to Jewish identity and survival.

Rabbi London puts it plainly: “What will the extreme left do that they haven’t already done? They’ve refused orders, incited civil disobedience, tried to shut down the economy—and they didn’t succeed.” Their threats lack substance because most Israelis—those serving in the military, building the economy, and forming society’s backbone—see through empty rhetoric that ignores Jewish values and security realities.

The reality on the ground contradicts the doomsayers. Israel’s economy continues to grow despite wartime pressures. Its military remains one of the world’s most effective fighting forces. Its happiness index ranks among the highest globally. And Israeli culture is experiencing renewed interest across society. These are not signs of a nation about to tear itself apart.

The only enemy who truly believed the left’s narrative about Israel’s internal divisions was Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader and mastermind of the October 7th massacre who was later killed by the IDF. Sinwar fatally miscalculated. The October 7th terrorists expected to find a fractured nation unable to defend itself. Instead, they encountered a people united by love of land, faith, and family. Israel’s response confirmed what Passover teaches: when faced with existential threats, the Jewish people don’t dissolve like meat in water; they solidify like meat in fire.

Passover isn’t just a story we tell—it’s our national DNA. Egypt’s brutality forged the Jewish people in fire, not water. We didn’t dissolve under pressure; we hardened into a nation. This same process continues today. For 18 months since October 7th, Israel has faced war on multiple fronts. Rather than fragmenting society, as Barak predicts, this pressure reveals our strength. Walk through Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, or Hebron—you’ll find a people arguing fiercely yet standing together when it matters. The progressive elite may dominate headlines with threats of civil war, but they miss what’s happening on the ground: Israelis are drawing closer, not pulling apart. History repeats itself—enemies always mistake our internal debates for weakness.

With the World Zionist Congress elections happening now, Israel365 Action (Slate #7) represents these very values of national strength and biblical truth. Like the Passover sacrifice that was roasted, not boiled, Israel needs leadership that will strengthen its core, not dissolve its identity. For those who believe in the Bible’s vision for a strong, united Israel with sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, Slate #7 is the clear choice.

To our Jewish readers: Click here to VOTE SLATE #7 NOW! The future of Israel depends on your action today. It costs just $5 to vote, takes only minutes, and fulfills your duty to God’s covenant.

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