For 46 of Israel's 50 years in existence, through more than two dozen changes of government, the Jewish state has looked eastwards to see the reassuringly unchanging regime of King Hussein.
For the past 30 years, as Jordan turned from enemy to ally in the course of secret and, more recently, public contacts, Israelis have come to respect, admire and even conceive a genuine affection for the world's longest-serving ruler.
And so when, as the king was rushed back to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota this week, Israel's Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, said simply that Israel's prayers were with him, he was precisely reflecting the public mood.
Israel, on a personal and a national level, wants to see King Hussein remain the face of Jordan for as long as possible.
Perhaps the most unlikely Israelis to express their concern for his wellbeing, the Israelis who demonstrate more than any others how deeply the king is identified here with decency and the desire for peace, are the families of the seven Israeli teenage schoolgirls who were shot dead by a crazed Jordanian soldier at the so-called "island of peace" on the joint border near Tiberias two years ago.
"I am praying that the king will recover," said Mrs Miri Meiri, who lost her daughter, Yaelah, in the shooting.
"When he visited us, he brought us comfort, he strengthened us, and he helped us believe in peace."
The visit to which Mrs Meiri was referring was the king's round of condolence calls in the wake of the shootings.
He went to the homes of all seven grieving families, sat on the floor with them in accordance with Jewish custom, apologised, expressed shame at the murderous actions of one of his soldiers.
He promised to use the rest of his life to work for peace.
It is the knowledge that King Hussein has personally championed the peace process - which saw Israel and Jordan sign a full peace treaty in 1994 - that now has Israelis so concerned about the possibility of a vacuum in Amman.
Most diplomats here believe that Crown Prince Abdullah will follow the king's line on good relations with Israel.
But their fear is that he may not be strong enough to quell the kind of dissent, from Islamic activists and some of the professional unions, that the king was frequently moved to quash.
The king's strategy, though never explicitly stated, was to rely on Israel more than any other of his neighbours - and this mindset was largely reciprocated here.
The two countries have seen themselves as partners in deterring potential adventurism in the region, be the source Iraq, Syria or the Palestinians.
Ironically, until just a few years ago, Israel's Foreign Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, was publicly characterising Jordan as the true Palestinian state.
Mr Netanyahu himself used to endorse this assessment.
But both men, like almost every Israeli leader before them, came to recognise the importance of stable relations with Jordan, particularly to contain Palestinian ambitions.
The former Israeli prime minister, Mr Shimon Peres, said yesterday that the Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, had told him he would postpone his proclamation of a Palestinian state until after the Israeli elections.
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright pledged yesterday that Washington would stand by key Arab ally Jordan, shaken by fears over the King's health. Ms Albright visited newly appointed Crown Prince Abdullah just hours before the king returned to the US.)