The Two-State Solution: Why It Will Not Work (Part 3)

Islam Cannot Allow It

Before we begin, a quick reminder: this is Part 3 of a four-part series.

If you missed Parts 1 or 2, you can find them—along with other earlier posts—by visiting my archive here:

👉 https://www.fromstuart.com/archive

Now, let’s get started.

---

A Hard Truth We Rarely Hear

If we want to understand the Middle East conflict—especially the ongoing struggle over the land of Israel—we need to be honest about what’s really driving it.

The objections of Israel’s Arab neighbors to the very existence of the Jewish state are often framed as political or nationalistic. But at their core, they are not.

They are religious.

Not all Arabs are Muslims, of course. But the overwhelming majority are followers of the prophet Muhammad and the teachings of the Koran. As a result, opposition to Israel is rooted far more deeply in Islamic theology than in modern politics.

---

Why the Land Matters So Much

In Islam, the land of Israel is considered holy—second in importance only to Arabia itself. According to the Koran, this land is blessed by God (Surah 7:137; 21:71, 81). That alone makes it sacred in Islamic thought.

The land is also revered because it contains Islamic holy sites, such as the tomb of Abraham in Hebron. Abraham matters deeply to Muslims because, through his son Ishmael, he is regarded as the father of the Arab peoples.

But above all else, Jerusalem holds a unique and exalted place in Islam.

---

Jerusalem: The Third Holiest City in Islam

Jerusalem is known in Arabic as al-Quds—“the Holy.” It is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, believed by Islamic tradition to have been the second mosque ever built on earth.

Jerusalem’s significance is further magnified by the Islamic account of Muhammad’s “Night Journey.” Based on a brief and obscure verse in the Koran (Surah 17:1), Muslim tradition teaches that Muhammad was carried by a supernatural horse to Jerusalem.

There, he is said to have tied the horse to the Western Wall and ascended from the Temple Mount into heaven, where he received the instruction that Muslims must pray five times each day.

Afterward, Muhammad returned to earth and was conveyed back to Arabia.

To sanctify the spot from which Muhammad supposedly ascended, the Dome of the Rock was built in AD 691—its gold dome now one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world.

Because of all this, Jerusalem became Islam’s third-holiest city, behind only Mecca (Muhammad’s birthplace) and Medina (the place of his death).

---

Why Jihad Enters the Conversation

Here is the critical point.

Because Jerusalem—and the land of Israel as a whole—is not currently under Islamic rule, many Muslims believe they are religiously justified, even obligated, to wage jihad—literally “striving,” commonly understood as holy war—to reclaim it.

From this perspective, the modern State of Israel is not just a political problem.

It is a theological humiliation.

It represents the defeat of believers by unbelievers—the triumph of Jews over Islam. And in the Islamic worldview, that shame must be erased.

---

Why Compromise Is Impossible

Islamic law divides the world into only two realms:

· The House of Islam — lands under Islamic authority

· The House of War — lands that are not

Once a territory becomes part of the House of Islam, it is considered Islamic forever, regardless of who controls it or how much time passes.

There is no expiration date.

This is why territorial compromise is not truly possible. From an Islamic standpoint, Israel occupies land that already belongs—permanently—to Islam.

---

Islam’s “Replacement Theology”

While Islam acknowledges Judaism and Christianity, it claims to be the final and definitive revelation of God.

In Islamic theology, both Jews and Christians failed when they rejected Muhammad. As a result, Islam believes it inherits everything that once belonged to them—their land, their holy places, and even their religious authority.

In that sense, Islam is the ultimate form of replacement theology.

The logic goes something like this:

Yes, the Jews may once have been God’s chosen people—but they failed.
Then the Christians came along, and they failed as well.
Finally, Muhammad brought the last revelation.
Now we, the Muslims, are the chosen people of God.
We replace you both.

From within that worldview, it is simply inconceivable that Jewish—or Christian—hands should control land and holy sites that Islam believes now belong exclusively to itself.

---

Why the Two-State Solution Fails

This is why the two-state solution, however reasonable it may sound to Western ears, cannot work.

It asks Islam to accept something its theology does not permit.

And until that reality is acknowledged, every proposed “peace plan” will remain what it has always been:

Well-intentioned, sincere—and doomed to fail.

We’ve looked at this issue from the Palestinian perspective, the Israeli perspective, and the Islamic perspective. In the next—and final—installment, we’ll step back and ask the most important question of all: What does God have to say about it?

-Stuart