Eric Silver writes in the February, 1990 issue of Political Quarterly:

Israel's Proclamation of Independence makes few concessions to the Almighty. The word 'God' does not appear, though there is a passing reference to trusting in the 'Rock of Israel'. Israel, it decrees, will be a Jewish state, but the concept is nowhere defined. The state, it says, 'will be based on the principles of liberty, justice and peace as conceived by the Prophets of Israel; will uphold the full social and political equality of all its citizens, without distinction of religion, race, or sex; will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, education and culture; will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and will loyally uphold the principles of the United Nations Charter'.

Every student of modern Israel should reread the proclamation of May 14, 1948, at least once a year. It is a reminder of the secular vision of the founding fathers. Israel was to be a modern democratic state, an expression of Jewish nationalism rather than Jewish faith. The text reads as if the drafting committee was more familiar with the American and French revolutions than with the intricacies of Talmud. The phrase 'as conceived by the Prophets of Israel' is little more than rhetoric. Which of the Prophets were they talking about?