21/04/2023 - THE FATE OF REBEL KINGS

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He defeated many nations and slew mighty kings Psalm 135.10

On the way to Canaan, the unbelief of the Israelites prevented the Lord from giving them the Land of Promise in peace. If they had heeded the divine command, none of their children would have died, and none of the people who inhabited that region would have resisted them. God is perfect in all that He speaks and does, and His works are done in righteousness. For centuries, those people refused to obey the Lord, so He granted their land to the children of Israel (Deuteronomy 18.9-13).

Since they created the figure of the spies, and the spies returned with the negative report, the Almighty led them through the desert for 40 years, preparing them for the worst: war (Deuteronomy 19.19-40). There would have been no battle or deaths among them, had they listened to the Supreme Commander. Similarly, today, God’s people can be spared from calamities, deaths and other suffering, as the Bible says: No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling (Psalm 91.10).

The Most High teaches people to live without giving the evil one the chance to invest against them in order to make them fall into sin, but they don’t want to obey the Lord. Jesus warned: O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! (Matthew 23.37).

When people hear the Word, everything changes for the better, but there are always those who want to remain in error and, by doing so, convince others in the family to also remain as they are. After a while, they complain about their fate, as all kinds of misfortune befall them. When they seek the Lord again, He shows Himself to be their Friend and Father, but it will be necessary for them to repent. Then the doors will open for them to receive what they need.

Moses asked Sihon, king of Heshbon, for permission to pass through his territory, and would even pay for the water and food that the cattle and Israelites consumed. In response, the king went with his army to destroy Israel (Deuteronomy 2.26-36). Because the people of Israel were not prepared for war, the king was convinced that it would be very easy to destroy them. However, when he saw the wickedness of Sihon, the Lord commanded Moses to confront him, and so the king and his people died, and the land was taken. Trust!

Og, king of Bashan, also received a humble request for permission from Moses, but his response was identical to that of Sihon (Deuteronomy 3.1-11). Og prepared his army and invested against the Israelites, but the Most High commanded Moses to fight against him. Og lost the war, and his country fled to the Ammonites. He was a giant whose bed was 4 meters long. No one is a match for the people who know their God. Believe!

Later, other kings died and had their people extinguished for resisting God. Whoever acts in rebellion will later conclude that he made the wrong decision. The Lord has never lost a single battle, but the rebellious think that they can beat Him. How naive! How could His creation, separated from Him by Adam’s sin, overcome Him? This is the guarantee that our future will be beautiful: today we don’t have to wage war against flesh and blood, but against the principalities of hell! (Ephesians 6.12).

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares