Welcome back, Friends!

Israel is a fascinating place and I’ll do my best to show you why!  We’ll focus on the size and population of Israel today.

In total area, Israel is a mere 8300 square miles.  (10,700 square miles if you count water area and disputed territory currently controlled by Palestinians.)  For my friends in Arizona, I’ll make a recognizable comparison.  Maricopa County spans just over 9200 square miles.  For those of you who may not be familiar with Maricopa County, perhaps this will help:  Israel is comparable in size to the state of New Jersey (~8700 sq miles).  Here’s a visual:

In terms of comparison to her neighbors, Israel is a mere speck on the map in comparison to the Arab world. Yet that tiny blue strip of land (on the map below) is what most of the fuss is about in the Middle East!  In fact, some of Israel’s neighbors desire to take over the land.  Others wish to destroy her!  Gives deeper meaning to “If God is for us, who can be against us,” doesn’t it!

There are almost 400 million people in the Middle East.  8 million (2%) of those inhabit Israel.  Of those 8 million, ~1.6 million are Arab!  Not only do some Arabs make their homes in Israel, but they are also represented in Israeli government…the only democratic government in the Middle East.

That’s a bit about Israel’s size and population.  I’ll try to share more interesting facts in the days to come!

Blessings!