HaRav Dov Begon is Head of Yeshivat Machon Meir.
At the conclusion of the section of rebuke to the People of Israel, the Holy One Blessed be He promises that despite all of the harsh things in the rebuke, the covenant between Him and the People of Israel is an eternal covenant and will never be annulled, as it says:
“And I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham I will remember, and I will remember the Land… And I will remember for them the covenant of the first ones whom I took out of the land of Egypt before the eyes of the nations, to be their God, I am the Lord" (Leviticus 26:42-45).
Rashi explains: Why are the Patriarchs listed in reverse order (from Jacob to Abraham)? Rather, Jacob alone is worthy of this. And if he is not worthy, then Isaac is with him. And if he is not worthy, then Abraham is with him, for he is worthy.
And if, Heaven forbid, the three Patriarchs are not worthy, then the covenant which He made with the Land of Israel is worthy. Therefore the verse adds, “And I will remember the Land" (see the beginning of Em HaBanim Semeicha by Rabbi Teichtal).
The Patriarchs and the Land - with all of them the Holy One Blessed be He made a covenant whose purpose is the revelation of the glory of God in His world through His people in His unique Holy Land which He created especially for them.
The Holy One Blessed be He, chose the Land of Israel, the Patriarchs, and the Nation of Israel, as it is written: “For the Lord has chosen Zion; He desired it for His dwelling place. For the Lord chose Jacob for Himself, Israel for His treasured nation. For the Lord will not abandon His people, nor forsake His inheritance."
The choice of Israel and the Land of Israel by the Creator of the world is an eternal covenant, and it will never be broken, for “the Eternal One of Israel does not lie."
At present, fortunate are we, how good is our portion and the portion of our generation, that we see with our own eyes how the People of Israel rises to life again, and the verse is fulfilled in us: “And I broke the bars of your yoke and led you upright" (Leviticus 26:13), as Rashi explains - “upright," with erect stature.
We and the entire world clearly see how the Holy One Blessed be He, keeps the covenant - the covenant of the Patriarchs and the covenant of the Land. And all this after two thousand years of exile and after the terrible Holocaust, in which the sections of rebuke were fulfilled.
During the years of exile, two religions arose that came to challenge the chosenness of the People of Israel and the covenant between them and the Creator of the world - Christianity and Islam.
The Christians, by saying in their blatant falsehood that the Holy One Blessed be He made a new covenant with them; and the Muslims, by saying with equal falsehood that their prophet is the seal of the prophets and nullifies everything that came before him.
Both of these religions find it difficult to accept the revival of the People of Israel, and they fight against us openly and secretly.
The Muslims fight us openly, through repeated wars to destroy the State of Israel, Heaven forbid. And the Christians fight us secretly and deceitfully, through missionary activity and its branches with smooth speech, and through indirect and hidden support for the enemies of Israel.
But all of their lies and intrigues will not help them to achieve the nefarious goals. Am Yisrael is the eternal nation, and the covenant which the Holy One Blessed be He made with us is an eternal and unbreakable covenant.
The day is not far off when all the inhabitants of the world will recognize that the Name of the Lord is called upon us, as it is written: “And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the Name of the Lord is called upon you, and they shall fear you" (Deuteronomy 28:10).
The Christians and Muslims will recognize and know that the founders of their religions and those who cling to them inherited falsehood (see Rambam, Laws of Kings, Chapter 11, uncensored “Rambam La’Am" edition).
Through this, the Aleynu prayer will be fulfilled in us:
“Therefore we hope to You, Lord our God, to soon behold the glory of Your strength, to remove idols from the earth and false gods shall be utterly cut off, to perfect the world under the Kingdom of the Almighty; and all mankind shall call upon Your Name, to turn all the wicked of the earth toward You… And they shall all accept the yoke of Your Kingdom, and You shall reign over them speedily forever and ever… as it is written in Your Torah: The Lord shall reign forever and ever."