trust in God

The Census

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11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord. 14 Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the Lord’s offering. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the Lord‘s offering to make atonement for your lives. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.” – Exodus 30:11-16 ESV

The Tabernacle, like any other man-made structure, was going to require ongoing maintenance and upkeep. Over the next 500 years of use, its carefully crafted timbers, veils, furnishings, and gold-covered fixtures would need repairs and replacement. Its construction had been funded by donations from the people of Israel but to cover the cost of its maintenance, God required a tax be collected from every male who was at least 20 years old. To determine the number of eligible males, God ordered Moses to take a census or literally, a head count of the people.

According to the book of Numbers, this census was not taken until ten months later. The most likely reason for the delay was that the census was not necessary until the construction of the Tabernacle was complete.

The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, company by company.” – Numbers 1:1-3 ESV

The completed census revealed a total of 603,550 male Israelites 20 years old or older. But that number did not include any men from the tribe of Levi because God had ordered their exclusion from the census.

“Do not include the tribe of Levi in the registration; do not count them with the rest of the Israelites. Put the Levites in charge of the Tabernacle of the Covenant, along with all its furnishings and equipment. They must carry the Tabernacle and all its furnishings as you travel, and they must take care of it and camp around it. Whenever it is time for the Tabernacle to move, the Levites will take it down. And when it is time to stop, they will set it up again.” – Numbers 1:49-51 NLT

These 603,550 male members of the Israelite community were ordered to pay a tax that would be used to cover the cost of maintaining God’s house. But there was a more important purpose behind this levy.

“…each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them.” – Exodus 30:12 ESV

The dual purpose behind the tax is clarified in verse 16.

“You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.” – Exodus 30:16 ESV

This half-shekel tax was to be considered an offering to the Lord but it was to also function as a reminder to each Israelite of their status as God’s people. The Hebrew word translated as “ransom” is כֹּפֶר (kōp̄er) and it means “price of a life” or “redemption price.” This so-called tax was actually a payment made by each Israelite male to signify that their lives belonged to God. This payment did not atone for their sins because that was only possible through blood sacrifice. But it let every Israelite know that their lives were not their own. He had redeemed or purchased them out of slavery in Egypt and made them His own people.

The apostle Paul picks up on this idea in his first letter to the believers in Corinth.

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. – 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT

The “atonement money” did not atone for sins, but it made atonement for their lives. And not only that, it served as a form of protection from God’s wrath.

“…each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them.” – Exodus 30:12 ESV

God warns Moses that the taking of the census could prove to be a dangerous proposition. Numbering the people could lead the Israelites to develop a sense of self-sufficiency and independence from God. When they discovered that they had more than 600,000 men of fighting age, they might be tempted to become overconfident and reliant upon their own strength.

“When God numbers or orders anything to be numbered, taking the sum of them denotes that they belong to Him, and that He has the sovereign right to do with them as He pleases. The action itself says of the things numbered, ‘These are Mine, and I assign them their place as I will.’” – A. W. Pink, Gleanings in Exodus

God had promised to make of Abraham a great nation, and He had kept that promise. When the family of Jacob had entered Egypt there had only been 70 of them. But some four centuries later, their number had exploded.

…the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them. – Exodus 1:7 ESV

And when the ten plagues from God finally forced the Egyptians to release the Israelites, they marched out like a mighty army.

…the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. – Exodus 12:37 ESV

This had all been God’s doing. Their exponential growth and miraculous release from captivity had been the work of Yahweh and they could not claim any credit for it. So, when the census was taken, they were not to marvel at their own might or become prideful of their capacity for self-rule. They belonged to God.

One of the keys to understanding all of this is to recognize that God ordered the census to record the number of fighting men. These were to be able-bodied male Israelites who could march into battle against the enemies who occupied the land of Canaan. But God wanted the Israelites to know that their vast numbers were not to be their hope. Years later, when the people were standing on the edge of the Jordan River preparing to enter the Promised Land for the very first time, Moses would remind them:

“The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.” – Deuteronomy 1:30-31 ESV

Each time the Israelites prepared to go into battle, the priests were to gather all the fighting men and tell them, “Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint. Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory” (Deuteronomy 20:3-4 ESV).

The book of 2 Samuel records a much-later event when King David took a census of the people of Israel. While he had been prompted to do so by God, it was meant as a punishment against the people for their wickedness. And David’s general, Joab, recognized the nature of this test from the Lord.

“May the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?” – 2 Samuel 24:3 ESV

But David went ahead with the census, and nine months and 20 days later, he received the good news.

Joab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to the king: in Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000. – 2 Samuel 24:9 ESV

But David regretted his decision and immediately confessed his sin to God.

“I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” – 2 Samuel 24:10 ESV

He had wanted to know the size of his army, and when he had learned that there were 1,300,000 soldiers under his command, he knew he had made a drastic mistake. He probably recognized the pride he felt upon learning of his massive military might. A sense of arrogance and self-sufficiency must have welled up within him as he considered the size of his army. But then he realized that he was putting his faith in the wrong thing. He had taken his eyes off of the Lord. And while David received forgiveness from God, he still had to pay for his costly error.

…the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men. – 2 Samuel 24:15 ESV

To assuage the anger of God, David used his own money to purchase a piece of land where he commissioned the construction of an altar to God. He paid 50 shekels of silver for the land and 50 oxen, which he sacrificed on the altar. And as a result of this costly gesture, God relented.

…the Lord responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel. – 2 Samuel 24:25 ESV

David had placed a higher priority on the size of his army than the power of His God. For just a moment, he had taken his eyes off of the Lord and focused his hopes on the wrong thing. And God wanted Moses to protect Moses from making that same mistake. The number of able-bodied me who could take up swords against the enemy was to remind Moses and the people of Israel of God’s greatness, not their own. The census was really designed to glorify Israel’s God of Israel and not its army. And the tax was a reminder that the life of each of these men belonged to God. They were, first and foremost, an army of priests, a holy nation unto the Lord.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Faith Is the Victory

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1 When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negeb, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, he fought against Israel, and took some of them captive. 2 And Israel vowed a vow to the Lord and said, “If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I will devote their cities to destruction.” 3 And the Lord heeded the voice of Israel and gave over the Canaanites, and they devoted them and their cities to destruction. So the name of the place was called Hormah.

4 From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” 6 Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. 7 And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. 8 And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. – Numbers 21:1-9 ESV

One of the things the Israelites seemed to quickly forget was that their presence in the wilderness was their own fault. God had led them from Egypt to the edge of the land of promise 40 years earlier, but they had decided that entrance into the land was way too risky. The 12 spies they had in to reconnoiter the land had returned with a conflicting report concerning conditions in Canaan.

“We entered the land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country—a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produces. But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak!” – Numbers 13:27-28 ESV

The second half of their report left the Israelites dejected and demoralized. Despite the news that this land was fertile and filled with abundant fruit, the presence of “giants” was too much for the Israelites. And the spies fed their doubts and anxieties by confirming their worst fears.

“We can’t go up against them! They are stronger than we are!” So they spread this bad report about the land among the Israelites: “The land we traveled through and explored will devour anyone who goes to live there. All the people we saw were huge. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. Next to them we felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they thought, too!” – Numbers 13:31-33 ESV

These rumors succeeded in convincing the Israelites that God’s promise of victory over their enemies was impossible. Rather than enter the land and risk certain death, they decided it would make more sense to return to Egypt. This bit of twisted logic earned them the wrath of God. He made the fateful decision to allow that entire generation to spend the rest of their lives wandering aimlessly in the wilderness until none of them was left. They would not be allowed to enter Canaan or return to Egypt. Instead, they would spend the remaining days of their lives in a kind of existential limbo that lasted four decades.

During that time, both Miriam and Aaron died. Many of their friends and family members succumbed to the effects of old age and illness. And they all discovered that life in the wilderness was no picnic. Their persistent presence near the borders of Canaan had attracted the attention of the land’s occupants. These nations had heard the rumors about this massive host of people who had escaped from Egypt and were headed their way. It is likely that they knew the Israelites to be the descendants of Jacob and were afraid that they would be looking to find a place to live. This was a migrant problem of epic proportions. The thought of two million-plus Israelites invading their borders caused these nations to react with fear and brute force.

The last chapter revealed that the Edomites sent a large army to dissuade the Israelites from attempting to pass through their land. They wanted nothing to do with them. And now, “The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that the Israelites were approaching on the road through Atharim. So he attacked the Israelites and took some of them as prisoners” (Numbers 21:2 NLT). Nothing was going well for the Israelites. As a nation, they were persona non grata. They had no home and were finding the nations outside the borders of Canaan to be just as dangerous as the “giants“ they had refused to confront. Their refusal to enter the land had come with serious repercussions.

Yet, there is one glimmer of hope in this dark period of Israel’s existence. Their self-inflicted troubles caused them to call out to God. When some of their people were captured by the forces of the king of Arad, the Israelites begged God to come to their aid. And what’s interesting to note is that these very same people who had seen the odds in Canaan as insurmountable were suddenly ready to take on all comers. They even made a vow to completely annihilate the opposition if God would come to their aid.

“If you will hand these people over to us, we will completely destroy all their towns.” – Numbers 21:2 NLT

What makes this even more fascinating is that the Israelites had been here before. Thirty-eight years earlier, after having refused to enter the land of Canaan the first time, God had sentenced them to their life of wandering in the wilderness. In response to this death sentence from God, they quickly changed their minds and decided to enter the land after all. But Moses warned them that it was too late.

“Why are you now disobeying the Lord’s orders to return to the wilderness? It won’t work. Do not go up into the land now. You will only be crushed by your enemies because the Lord is not with you. When you face the Amalekites and Canaanites in battle, you will be slaughtered. The Lord will abandon you because you have abandoned the Lord.” – Numbers 14:41-43 NLT

But the people refused to listen, and “defiantly pushed ahead toward the hill country, even though neither Moses nor the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant left the camp” (Numbers 14:44 NLT). The result was a rout. The Israelites were soundly defeated because they attempted to take on their enemies without God’s permission or help.

Now, 38 years later, they decided to seek God’s assistance, and He “heard the Israelites’ request and gave them victory over the Canaanites. The Israelites completely destroyed them and their towns” (Numbers 22:3 NLT). Amazingly, what they had feared was impossible four decades earlier, was actually quite easy when they did it God’s way. Their victory was assured when they chose to seek God’s permission and assistance.

But even after that exhilarating display of God’s power, they quickly reverted to their old habit of complaining about their lot in life. While they had enjoyed a great victory, they were not allowed to occupy the towns they had conquered. Instead, they had to backtrack to Mount Hor and then travel further south and east in order to skirt the borders of Edom. They had gotten a taste of success, but still found themselves cursed to wander through the wilderness. Those conquered cities and villages were not theirs to occupy.

And as the people made the long trek around Edom, the thrill of victory soon gave way to the agony of defeat and despair.

…the people grew impatient with the long journey, and they began to speak against God and Moses. “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?” they complained. “There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!” – Numbers 21:4-5 NLT

The incessant wandering they had brought on themselves soon led to discontentment and dissidence with God’s will. They were not happy with the way things were going and they let Moses know. And God let them have it. He sent a plague of poisonous snakes among them, and soon the bodies of the dead began to pile up. And suddenly, the people were singing a different tune.

“We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take away the snakes.” – Numbers 21:7 NLT

God’s judgment produced a confession. The people repented of their sin and begged Moses to intercede on their behalf and ask God to remove the curse of the snakes. And when Moses sought God, he was given the following instructions.

“Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!” – Numbers 21:8 NLT

This rather strange command makes it appear as if God was asking Moses to make an idol. But the serpent on a stick was not meant to be worshiped. It was intended to be a test of their faith.

God did not answer their request to remove the snakes. In fact, He indicated that the snakes would continue to do what He had sent them to do. They would keep inflicting pain, suffering, and death upon the Israelites as punishment for their ingratitude and dishonor of His holiness. What God did was create a rather bizarre plan for receiving deliverance over certain death. When bitten, all the people had to do was look at the serpent on the pole and they would be healed. But that simple glance would require faith.

God did not remove the penalty for their sins. They would still be bitten by the snakes. But now they had a means of receiving life rather than death. The bite of the snake would no longer prove deadly. But the secret to receiving life rather than death was faith – the belief that God could and would heal. And that faith required the one who had been bitten to look their death sentence in the face. They had to turn their eyes to the pole and see their condemnation on public display. And if they refused, they would die.

And the apostle John would later record the words of Jesus where He stated that this entire scene in the wilderness was meant to foreshadow His coming and His substitutionary death on the cross.

…the Son of Man has come down from heaven. And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. – John 3:13-15 NLT

When a sinner looks at the cross, he sees the wrath of God poured out on the sins of mankind. Jesus was not the cause of our death but the means of our victory over it. He bore our sins so that we might not have to pay for them with our own lives. And that is exactly what the apostle Paul told the believers in Corinth.

God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. – 2 Corinthians 5:21 BSB

And Peter would state the same blessed hope.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. – 1 Peter 2:24 ESV

And the key to victory over death is faith. One must “believe in Him” to be saved. The Israelites had only to look at the serpent on the pole to be saved from death. And all those under the death sentence that comes as a result of sin need only look at the cross of Christ to receive life everlasting.

It should be noted that this entire scene began with the people complaining about the manna that God had graciously given as a source of life. Their ingratitude was met with God’s judgment. They had refused His offer of the bread of life and faced the sting of death. And the only means of salvation would be faith in His mercy and grace.

“The bread is a picture of Jesus; as the Bread of Heaven he is the proper nourisher of his people. The bronze snake is a picture of Jesus, who became sin for us as he hung on that awful tree. The manna had to be eaten. The snake had to be seen. The commands of Scripture are for doing. The manna was no good if left to rot. The metal snake would not avail if none looked at it. The manna and the snake are twin aspects of the grace of God.” – Ronald B. Allen, “Numbers.” In Genesis—Numbers. Vol. 2 of The Expositor’s Bible Commentary

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Promise Maker

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1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness. – Genesis 15-1-6 ESV

Abram has just received a blessing from Melchizedek, priest of the Most High God.

Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
    Creator of heaven and earth. – Genesis 14:19 NLT

Sometime after his encounter with the king-priest Melchizedek, God provided his servant with a confirmation and explanation of that blessing in the form of a vision. The Most High God referred to Himself as Abram’s shield or protector. In the same way that Abram had protected and delivered his nephew Lot during his time of captivity, God would be Abram’s defender and deliverer. And while Abram had turned down the king of Sodom’s offer of all the plunder taken from Sodom, he could be certain that God would reward him with something of far greater value.

One of the questions this passage raises is why God opened up His address to Abram with the words, “Fear not.” What was it that Abram feared? Some believe that, upon receiving an unexpected vision of the Most High God, Abram was filled with fear and awe. This would have been a normal and natural reaction to such an encounter with God. When Moses was given a vision of God in the form of a burning bush, “he hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God” (Exodus 3:6 ESV).

But based on the context of chapter 14, it makes more sense to see Abram’s fear as horizontal in nature, rather than vertical. Due to his victory over the four Mesopotamian kings, Abram had just made himself some powerful enemies. Not only that, by displaying his military might, he had inadvertently placed a target on his back. Whether he liked it or not, he was the new sheriff in town and everyone would be gunning for him. Abram was essentially a shepherd and not a warrior, and the thought that his enemies might seek retribution on him and his household was keeping him up at night. So, God assured his fearful servant that he had nothing to worry about. Abram could rest in the knowledge that God would protect and provide for him. It is the same message that God would give to Abram’s descendants centuries later.

“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10 NLT

Abram’s response to God’s words of comfort and encouragement is less than confident.

“O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” – Genesis 15:2 NLT

With this statement, Abram reveals that his greatest fear was that of failure. He knew that God had promised to bless him. He couldn’t stop thinking about the words God had spoken when he was still living in Haran.

“I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” – Genesis 12:2-3 ESV

Abram had been 75-years-old when God made that promise. And now, years later, he had only grown older and his wife’s fertility problem had not improved. All the way back in Genesis 11:30, Moses had disclosed the sad state of Sarai’s reproductive health: “Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.”

All of these factors weighed heavily on Abram’s mind. Based on the circumstances, he could see no way that God’s promise could ever come to fruition. Abram had resigned himself to the fact that one of his household servants would end up as his heir. He informed God about the desperate nature of his situation and even blamed Him for it.

“You have given me no descendants of my own, so one of my servants will be my heir.” – Genesis 15:3 NLT

It appears that Abram was growing impatient. During his time in the land of Canaan, he had seen his financial prospects improve. He had grown rich and his herds had grown in number. And here was God promising to shower him with further rewards. But what difference would it make if he had no one to whom he could leave his great wealth?

It’s not difficult to ascertain how Abram had assessed his situation and come up with a possible solution. He had given up on Sarai ever giving birth to a son, and had assumed that they would end up adopting one of their household servants as their son and making him the rightful heir to their estate. There had probably been a time when Abram had believed Lot, his nephew, would be the logical choice. But there had been a fallout between the two of them. So, at this point, Abram had determined that his heir would end up being Eliezer of Damascus.

What is ironic about Abram’s conclusion is that Eliezer’s name means “God is help.” Yet, it would appear that Abram was the one who was attempting to help God. He was offering God a logical solution to the whole fruitlessness problem. Abram was willing to settle for less. He was willing to accept a foreign-born “member” of his house as his heir rather than wait on God to do the impossible. But God had other plans. He was not going to compromise. And Sarai’s barrenness was not going to be a problem. So, God gently but firmly broke the news to Abram.

“No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” – Genesis 15:4 NLT

In essence, God said, “Thanks for the tip, but no!” The Creator-God didn’t need Abram’s help or advice. If anything, Eliezer’s presence in Abram’s house was meant to be a constant reminder that “God is help.” Eliezer wasn’t intended to be the solution. No, every time Abram said Eliezer’s name, it should have reminded him that God was the solution. And to stress the miraculous nature of His promise, God took Abram outside and told him to “look up into the sky and count the stars if you can” (Genesis 15:5 NLT). Then, as Abram stood staring up into the night sky, overwhelmed by the sheer number of stars, God boldly proclaimed, “That’s how many descendants you will have!” (Genesis 15:5 NLT).

This was not the first time Abram had heard such an outlandish prediction from God. Earlier, when Abram had separated from Lot, God had assured him that all the land of Canaan would be his and that land would be filled with his descendants.

“I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted!” – Genesis 13:16 NLT

This blessing would not come through Eliezer or any other substitute. God had promised to give Abram a son, and He was well aware of Sarai’s barrenness. In fact, as the sovereign God of the universe, her barrenness had been part of His plan all along. The improbability and impossibility of it all had been baked into the cake. God wanted Abram to understand that everything about this promise would be miraculous and supernatural.

And then Moses adds a somewhat surprising conclusion. Despite all of Abram’s former doubts and fears, he “believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith” (Genesis 15:6 NLT). Suddenly, Abram’s mental state went from doubt to assurance. He went from trying to help God out to having hope in God’s promise. His confidence in God grew deeper and richer.

It’s interesting to note that Abram had always believed that God would give him an heir. His doubts had been focused on the means by which God would fulfill that promise. He had been hung up on Sarai’s barrenness. That’s why he had come up with what he believed to be an acceptable and logical alternative solution. But now, his belief focused in on the power of God to accomplish the impossible. He went from believing in the promise to believing in the God who made the promise. And there is a huge difference.

In the great “Hall of Faith” found in chapter 11 of the book of Hebrews, the author states, “without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:6 ESV). Abram was learning that his faith in God was the key to the promise of God. That does not mean that faith is what determines our reward, but that faith or belief in God is the means by which we appropriate the promises of God. We have to believe, trust in, and place our confidence in the God behind the promise.

The author of Hebrews goes on to explain how Abram displayed faith in God. And he describes how Abram’s faith developed and deepened over time until it influenced even his wife, Sarai.

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore. – Hebrews 11:8-12 ESV

Moses declares that God counted or credited Abram’s faith as righteousness. Abram was justified or made right with God because he chose to believe and trust, not only in the promises of God but in the God behind the promises. Abram had transferred his hope in the promise to the divine promise maker. And the author of Hebrews goes on to point out that faith in the God of the promise is what sets His people apart. Whether a child of God ever sees the promise fulfilled in their lifetime, they will continue to trust in the word and reliability of the promise maker.

All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. – Hebrews 11:39 NLT

Abram would eventually see a son born to his barren wife. But he would never own any land in Canaan. He would never live to see the day when his descendants, as numerous as the stars in the sky, would occupy that land. But he would continue to believe that His God was good and could be trusted to do what He promised, whether Abram lived to see it or not. That is the essence of faith.

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. – Hebrews 11:1 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

All Things Are Possible

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14 And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. 15 And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him. 16 And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” 17 And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute. 18 And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.” 19 And he answered them, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” 20 And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. 21 And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 22 And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” 23 And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” 24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” 25 And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” 26 And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. 28 And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29 And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.” – Mark 9:14-29 ESV

The next day (Luke 9:37), when Jesus, Peter, James, and John rejoined the other disciples, they were greeted by a scene of chaos and confusion. There was a large crowd encircling the other nine disciples, who were in a heated argument with the scribes. But as soon as Jesus arrived on the scene, He became the focus of attention, drawing the crowds like moths to a flame.

Like a father who arrives home to find his children in an unexpected predicament, Jesus attempts to discern the cause of the trouble. And it doesn’t take Him long to discover that the conflict involves His disciples and one other man in the crowd. The rest of the crowd were like rubberneckers at an accident, drawn by the spectacle of it all and curious to see what was going to happen next.

When Jesus demanded to know the cause of the argument taking place, a father in the crowd spoke up.

“Teacher, I brought my son so you could heal him. He is possessed by an evil spirit that won’t let him talk. And whenever this spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground. Then he foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid.” – Mark 9:17-18 NLT

This man had come expecting to find Jesus but instead, he had encountered the nine disciples whom Jesus had left behind. In his account of this event, Matthew describes the man as kneeling at the feet of Jesus. His actions reveal his high regard for Jesus and his belief that Jesus was capable of assisting him with his need. He had brought his son to Jesus for healing but when he had discovered Jesus to be gone, he had turned to the disciples for help.

“So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn’t do it.” – Mark 9:18 NLT

Disappointed by his failure to find Jesus, the anxious father had turned to the disciples for help. And it seems clear from the text that these men had made a valiant effort to cast the demon from the man’s son but with no success. What makes their failure so significant is that Jesus had given all of the disciples the authority to cast out demons (Mark 3:15). And they had successfully proven their possession of that authority when Jesus had sent them out in pairs to preach, teach, and heal. Mark reports that “they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them” (Mark 6:13 ESV).

And yet, on this occasion, their efforts had come up short. The argument that had ensued must have begun when the disciples started making excuses for their failed attempts at exorcising the demon. Perhaps they began to question whether this man or his son had broken a particular Mosaic law and this violation had resulted in the boy’s condition. They were obviously frustrated at their inability to exercise their authority over the demon, and were trying to figure out what was standing in their way. When all the dust had settled, they even asked Jesus, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?” (Mark 9:28 NLT).

The scribes may have been dragged into the argument in order to explain the Mosaic Law and to give their opinions on the boy’s condition and the demon’s persistent power over him. The whole scene had quickly devolved into a shouting match, with each side pointing fingers at the other. And all the while, the boy remained demon possessed.

Into this storm of confusion and chaos, entered the only one who could bring peace and calm. Jesus, disappointed at the sordid scene taking place in front of Him, declared His frustration.

“O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” – Mark 9:19 ESV

To fully appreciate Jesus’ words, one must recall the transfiguration that Jesus had just experienced on the mountain top. For a brief moment in time, Jesus had been transformed into His future, glorified state. He had been joined by Moses and Elijah, two of the great patriarchs of the Hebrew people, and the three of them had discussed His coming “exodus” or departure from this life. It had all been a much-needed reminder that His days on this earth were coming to a close and He would soon be returning to His Father’s side. But upon His descent from the mountain, Jesus had encountered a scene of faithlessness and spiritual apostasy.

This recalls a similar scene that took place hundreds of years earlier. Moses, the great deliverer of the Hebrew people, had just spent 40 days and nights on the top of Mount Sinai. He had enjoyed an intimate communion with God and had received the Ten Commandments from the hand of God. But when He descended from the mountain, he had found the people of Israel worshiping before a false god. He had returned to a scene of chaos and confusion prompted by the faithlessness of the people of God.

Jesus, having descended from the mountain of transfiguration, was being forced to look upon a scene where faith was in short supply and the enemy was having his way among the people of God. The disciples’ inability to cast out the demon had left the boy still possessed and persecuted. But even more important, their failure of faith had left the people in a state of doubt and uncertainty.

But Jesus stepped into the darkness of the moment and focused His full attention of the state of the boy. The father provided Jesus with a blow-by-blow description of his son’s condition, explaining in great detail how relentlessly the demon had tormented his child. And you can sense his growing state of desperation as he begs Jesus for help.

“But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” – Mark 9:22 ESV

At this point, he is not even sure if Jesus can do anything about his son’s condition. He is losing hope. But Jesus gently rebukes the man’s timid and half-hearted expression of faith, stating, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes” (MRK 9:23 ESV). Jesus seems to be telling the man that it is not so much a matter of if He can heal the boy, but if He will. This was less an indictment of the man’s faith, so much as it was an exposure of his lack of understanding of who Jesus was.

The father, anxious to see his son healed, cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24 ESV). He desperately wanted to believe that Jesus could heal his son, but he had seen the disciples try and fail. He still harbored doubts and asked Jesus to remove any and all doubts by casting the demon from his son. And Jesus did just as the man wished. He addressed the demon directly, commanding it to leave the boy and to never return.

“You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” – Mark 9:25 ESV

And the demon obeyed, convulsing the boy one last time and leaving him in a catatonic state that made it appear as if he was dead. But Jesus raised the boy up, revealing him to be fully restored to health.

This entire scene had been a demonstration of faith. But the focus was not on the faith of the father. Jesus was exposing the faithlessness of His disciples. Matthew records that after Jesus had exorcised the demon and the disciples had asked why they had been unsuccessful, He had responded, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:20 ESV).

Remember, Jesus had told the man, “All things are possible for one who believes.” The emphasis was on His own faith, not that of the father. Jesus fully believed He had the power and authority to cast out the demon, and He proved it by doing so. He knew who He was and what He was capable of accomplishing with the power He had been given by God. But the disciples were another matter. Their belief had proven insufficient. But it was not the amount of their faith that was the problem. It was their inability to understand the true source of their power. According to Jesus, all they needed was the smallest portion of faith but in the full power of God, and they could literally “move mountains.”

Their ability to cast out demons did not reside in themselves. It was not some inherent power they possessed but it was meted out to them by God. That is why Jesus told them that “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer” (Mark 9:29 ESV). They had failed to understand that their earlier experience of casting out demons had been authorized by Jesus and made possible by God’s power, not their own. But they had somehow believed that they were in personal possession of that power. They had wrongly assumed that it had become permanently resident within them.

In trying to cast out the demon, they had put their faith in themselves. Like the Israelites in the wilderness, the disciples had ended up worshiping a false god: Themselves. They thought they were the possessors of power, but Jesus reminded them that even the smallest of faith placed in the power of God could produce the greatest of miracles. Jesus believed He had authority over the demon because He believed He had the power and authority of God at His disposal. His life was living proof that “All things are possible for one who believes.”

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Yet, I Will Rejoice

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c17 Though the fig tree should not blossom,

    nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
    and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
    and there be no herd in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
19 God, the Lord, is my strength;
    he makes my feet like the deer’s;
    he makes me tread on my high places.

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. – Habakkuk 3:17-19 ESV

Habakkuk has expressed his concern to God about the state of affairs in Judah, describing it as a place where the wicked outnumber the righteous, creating an atmosphere of injustice and violence. He was shocked by God’s surprising admission that He would use the pagan nation of Babylon as His instruments of judgment against Judah. Habakkuk had been looking for a spiritual revival in Judah, but God had plans to bring about their destruction and captivity.

Upon hearing God describe the divine retribution He had planned for Babylon’s role in Judah’s punishment, Habakkuk found himself encouraged and comforted. He reflected on God’s past acts of deliverance on behalf of the people of Israel and concluded that, in spite of all that was about to happen, he could trust God to do the right thing. The sovereign plan of God was just, right, and perfect in every detail.

I will quietly wait for the day of trouble
    to come upon people who invade us. – Habakkuk 3:16 ESV

Now, Habakkuk closes his book with a statement of complete confidence in God. This is not some pollyanna, positive-motivational claptrap intended to score brownie points with God. He is expressing his sincere belief in the greatness and goodness of God. He fully realizes that Judah’s immediate future is a grim one. There would be no miracle of national revival like the one that took place during the reign of King Josiah. Injustice, immorality, and wickedness would continue to plague the nation of Judah until the judgment of God fell upon them in the form of the Babylonian army. Conquest and captivity were the inevitable fate of God’s people because of their long history of rebellion and unfaithfulness.

Using a series of metaphorical comparisons, Habakkuk clearly reveals his understanding of Judah’s fate. He harbored no delusions that things were going to improve. In fact, he seems to have in mind the curses God had promised to bring on the people of Israel if they failed to keep their covenant agreement with Him.

“But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. Cursed shall you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the field.  Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Cursed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock.” – Deuteronomy 28:15-18 ESV

Their decision to disobey God would result in His discipline of them, in the form of tangible loss and devastating suffering.

“The Lord will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in all that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds, because you have forsaken me. The Lord will make the pestilence stick to you until he has consumed you off the land that you are entering to take possession of it. The Lord will strike you with wasting disease and with fever, inflammation and fiery heat, and with drought and with blight and with mildew.” –  Deuteronomy 28:20-22 ESV

Among the many curses that Moses outlined to the people of Israel were those affecting their crops and flocks.

“You shall carry much seed into the field and shall gather in little, for the locust shall consume it. You shall plant vineyards and dress them, but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes, for the worm shall eat them. You shall have olive trees throughout all your territory, but you shall not anoint yourself with the oil, for your olives shall drop off.” – Deuteronomy 28:38-40 ESV

And Habakkuk appears to take all these devastating signs of God’s disciplinary hand and boils them down into a few representative examples. He describes a fig tree that has failed to blossom, a sure sign that no fruit could be expected. It would be barren and of no value. He foresees barren vines, devoid of fruit, and guaranteeing no wine production. He envisions the annual olive harvest as failed, the fields lying barren and empty. And the subsequent famine has a devastating impact on the flocks and herds.

But although Habakkuk paints a bleak and depressing scenario, he expresses his firm intention to remain confident in the goodness of God.

…yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    I will take joy in the God of my salvation. – Habakkuk 3:18 ESV

Even if all these terrible things take place, which God had indicated they would, Habakkuk is determined to trust in God. His words are reminiscent of those spoken by Job.

Though he slay me, I will hope in him… – Job 13:15 ESV

Job was a man who had suffered great loss and, unlike the Israelites, he had done nothing to deserve it. He was completely innocent and yet, in a devastating series of catastrophic events, he lost all his flocks and herds, and received news that his children had been killed in a freak accident. And yet, his response to all of this undeserved and inexplicable loss was to say:

“I came naked from my mother’s womb,
    and I will be naked when I leave.
The Lord gave me what I had,
    and the Lord has taken it away.
Praise the name of the Lord!” – Job 1:21 NLT

But things only got worse. Job soon found himself suffering from a debilitating and painful skin disease for which there was no cure or no hope of relief. At that point, his own wife, assuming that Job had done something to deserve all this suffering, encouraged him to curse God and die. To which Job responded, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” (Job 2:10 NLT).

Habakkuk, like Job, was convinced that his God was good even when everything around him looked bad. He was not going to judge the goodness of God based on the nature of his circumstances. And yet, how easy it is for the children of God to “accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad.” And while we should always be grateful to God for His many blessings, their absence should never cause us to assume a lack of God’s presence.

It is right and proper to voice appreciation of God’s goodness when he bestows all that is necessary for life, health, and prosperity. But when these things are lacking, to rejoice in God for his own sake is evidence of pure faith. – Bruce, F. F. “Habakkuk.” In The Minor Prophets: An Exegetical and Expositional Commentary

Habakkuk was prepared for the worst, but fully confident in God’s best. He was placing his hope in the goodness of God. And this reflects a major shift in the prophet’s mood. He had started his book in a state of despair, complaining to God about the dismal conditions in Judah. But now, after having heard from God and being assured of His divine plans, Habakkuk was filled with confident assurance in his faithful, sovereign God.

The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
    He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
    able to tread upon the heights. – Habakkuk 3:19 NLT

Habakkuk knew that he would be able to endure all that was to come because his good God would give him strength. Like the apostle Paul, Habakkuk was relying on something greater than himself to face the ups and downs associated with this fallen world.

I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. – Philippians 4:11-13 ESV

The days ahead would be difficult. The discipline of God would be painful and purging. But Habakkuk was willing to put his confidence in Yahweh because He had always proven Himself to be trustworthy and true. The conditions in Judah were going to get worse before they got better. The Babylonians were coming, whether Habakkuk liked it or not. And it was all part of God’s divine plan for the future redemption of His people.

As followers of Christ, we face a similar situation as that experienced by Habakkuk. We live in a fallen world where sin and wickedness abound. The people of God are under constant attack with the enemy focusing all His efforts on the destruction of the body of Christ. And yet, Jesus warned us that these days would come. And He also told us to remain firm in our faith and full of peace because He has it all under control.

“But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” – John 16:32-33 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

A God You Can Count On

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1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to Shigionoth.

2 O Lord, I have heard the report of you,
    and your work, O Lord, do I fear.
In the midst of the years revive it;
    in the midst of the years make it known;
    in wrath remember mercy. – Habakkuk 3:1-2 ESV

Habakkuk has heard from God. The Almighty has provided the prophet with an assurance that Babylon will receive a just sentence for its role in the judgment of Judah. Yes, they will be used by God to bring about the divine discipline of God’s chosen people, but the Babylonians will also fall under His divine wrath for every act of aggression and subjugation they enact against Judah.

And with this assurance from God, Habakkuk begins to sing another tune – literally. This closing chapter is written in the form of a psalm or song. It is a prayer of praise in the form of a poem that was most likely put to music so that it could be sung by the people of God. The phrase, “according to Shigionoth” may be a reference to the melody that was to accompany Habakkuk’s words. The singular form of the Hebrew word is found in the introduction to Psalm 7, a psalm of David.

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning the words of Cush, a Benjamite.

But the Hebrew root word, shagah, provides some insight into what Habakkuk may have in mind with his prayer of praise to God. It means “to err, wander, go astray (morally), to sin through ignorance.” In David’s psalm, faced with apparent accusations of guilt from the lips of someone named Cush, he declares his innocence and asks God to either acquit or convict him.

O Lord my God, if I have done wrong
    or am guilty of injustice,
if I have betrayed a friend
    or plundered my enemy without cause,
then let my enemies capture me. – Psalm 7:3-5 NLT

He goes on to ask God for vindication and protection.

Declare me righteous, O Lord,
    for I am innocent, O Most High! – Psalm 7:8 NLT

He appeals to God as the one who “judges the nations” (Psalm 7:8 NLT).

God is my shield,
    saving those whose hearts are true and right.
God is an honest judge.
    He is angry with the wicked every day. – Psalm 7:10-11 NLT

And David is convinced that God will judge him fairly and eventually, fully vindicate him.

I will thank the Lord because he is just;
    I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High. – Psalm 7:17 NLT

It seems likely that Habakkuk’s song carries the same idea. Nowhere does he claim the nation of Judah to be innocent, but he does seem to appeal to God as a righteous judge who will one day vindicate His people. Having heard from God regarding the future judgment of Babylon, Habakkuk shares his intense longing to see that day come. He is expressing his belief that God will prove Himself faithful by fulfilling every promise He has made regarding Judah’s eventual vindication through Babylon’s destruction.

Habakkuk begins his song with a statement of wonder and praise for God’s remarkable reputation. As a prophet of God, he had been exposed to the very words of God, hearing firsthand what Yahweh had planned for Judah’s future. And it left him in a state of awe and amazement.

I have heard all about you, Lord.
    I am filled with awe by your amazing works. – Habakkuk 3:2 NLT

But, as a Hebrew, Habakkuk had also been raised on a steady diet of the stories of God’s intervention in the lives of His people. He had heard the creation story, the account of the flood and the preservation of Noah and his family. He had been told the story of God’s call of Abraham’s and the promise to make of him a great nation. As a child, he would have been exposed to all the stories about Joseph and the sons of Jacob in Egypt. The account of God’s amazing redemption of His people and their exodus out of Egypt would have been very familiar to him. The conquering of the land of promise, the rise of King David, the greatness of Solomon, the division of the kingdom, and the historical record of all the kings of Judah and Israel would have been well known to him. And through all those accounts, Habakkuk would have recognized the “amazing works” of God and been blown away by His power and persevering patience with His less-than-faithful people.

Unlike David, Habakkuk could not appeal to God based on a claim of Judah’s innocence. There was no way he could ask God to vindicate them because they were undeserving of His judgment. He knew full well that the people of Judah were guilty. In fact, he had begun his book with the admission that things had gotten so bad in Judah, that the wicked outnumbered the righteous.

So, Habakkuk looked to God’s well-established track record of showing up and delivering His people in times of trouble.

In this time of our deep need,
    help us again as you did in years gone by. – Habakkuk 3:2 NLT

Sadly, this was not the first time Judah had been faced with difficult circumstances. There had been countless other occasions when the people of God had found themselves faced with insurmountable odds and the potential for a devastating outcome. But Habakkuk knew that God had intervened on behalf of His people. He had repeatedly rescued them from their predicaments, graciously restoring them and providing them with yet another undeserved opportunity to prove their faithfulness to Him. And Habakkuk longed to see God do the same thing in his day.

But Habakkuk recognizes that the people of Judah were fully deserving of all that God was about to do to them. They stood guilty and condemned before a holy God. So, he appeals to God’s covenant faithfulness and track-record of extending undeserved mercy.

…in your anger, remember your mercy. – Habakkuk 3:2 NLT

It seems likely that Habakkuk would have been familiar with the content of the prayer prayed by Solomon at the dedication of the newly constructed temple. King Solomon had begun his prayer with a statement concerning God’s faithfulness: “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven above or on the earth below. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion” (1 Kings 8:23 NLT).

But Solomon knew that he and his people were prone to unfaithfulness. He was concerned that their behavior would fail to live up to the terms of God’s covenantal agreement with them. So, he began describing potential scenarios in which the nation might violate their covenant commitment and stand guilty before God. And he petitioned God: “May you always hear the prayers I make toward this place. May you hear the humble and earnest requests from me and your people Israel when we pray toward this place” (1 Kings 8:29-30 NLT). 

Solomon was appealing to God’s faithfulness because he knew there was little likelihood that the people of Israel would keep their end of the bargain. And when they failed to do so, He wanted to know that God would still intervene on their behalf. Solomon even included a worst-case scenario in which the people of Israel found themselves defeated and living in exile as a result of their disobedience to God.

“If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn to you and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and return them to this land you gave their ancestors.” – 1 Kings 8:33-34 NLT

Solomon knew that the only hope that Israel had for their present protection and future restoration was to be found in God alone. And Habakkuk echoed that same sentiment. He was appealing to his awe-inspiring, grace-bestowing, miracle-working God. And he greatly desired that God would continue to season His righteous anger with mercy. It was all the hope that the people of God had left. They had forsaken God. They had proven themselves incapable of living in faithful obedience to their covenant with God. And unless God showed them mercy, their future would be dark, and any hope of restoration, dim.

The words of the prophet, Jeremiah, written in the book of Lamentations, seem to indicate the heart behind Habakkuk’s prayer.

The thought of my suffering and homelessness
    is bitter beyond words.
I will never forget this awful time,
    as I grieve over my loss.
Yet I still dare to hope
    when I remember this:

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
    His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
    his mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;
    therefore, I will hope in him!” – Lamentations 3:19-24 NLT

God’s mercies are new every morning. Like the sun that shows up like clockwork at the start of each new day, God’s mercies never fail to arrive when needed. His faithfulness is unfailing. His love is unwavering. And, therefore, our hope in Him should be constant and abiding.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Refusing to Take Refuge in God.

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The word that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:

“Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in Migdol;
    proclaim in Memphis and Tahpanhes;
say, ‘Stand ready and be prepared,
    for the sword shall devour around you.’
Why are your mighty ones face down?
    They do not stand
    because the Lord thrust them down.
He made many stumble, and they fell,
    and they said one to another,
‘Arise, and let us go back to our own people
    and to the land of our birth,
    because of the sword of the oppressor.’
Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
    ‘Noisy one who lets the hour go by.’

“As I live, declares the King,
    whose name is the Lord of hosts,
like Tabor among the mountains
    and like Carmel by the sea, shall one come.
Prepare yourselves baggage for exile,
    O inhabitants of Egypt!
For Memphis shall become a waste,
    a ruin, without inhabitant.

“A beautiful heifer is Egypt,
    but a biting fly from the north has come upon her.
Even her hired soldiers in her midst
    are like fattened calves;
yes, they have turned and fled together;
    they did not stand,
for the day of their calamity has come upon them,
    the time of their punishment.

“She makes a sound like a serpent gliding away;
    for her enemies march in force
and come against her with axes
    like those who fell trees.
They shall cut down her forest,
declares the Lord,
    though it is impenetrable,
because they are more numerous than locusts;
    they are without number.
The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame;
    she shall be delivered into the hand of a people from the north.” – Jeremiah 46:13-24 ESV

Egypt’s defeat at battle of Carchemish would just be the beginning of her misery. Not long after his victory, Prince Nebuchadnezzar would return to Babylon, where he would receive his coronation as king. replacing his father Nabopolassar. Then, the newly crowned king of Babylon would set his sights on the land of Palestine, subduing Canaan and then moving west to once again to battle with Pharaoh, but this time Nebuchadnezzar would bring the fight to the land of Egypt. And the outcome of this conflict would be worse than the first. All of this would take place in 568-567 B.C., in exactly the manner God had prophesied.

Earlier in the book of Jeremiah, God had warned, “But suppose a nation or a kingdom will not be subject to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Suppose it will not submit to the yoke of servitude to him. I, the Lord, affirm that I will punish that nation. I will use the king of Babylon to punish it with war, starvation, and disease until I have destroyed it.” (Jeremiah 28:8 NLT). A few verses earlier, in that same chapter, God refers to “my servant, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon” (Jeremiah 28:6 NLT). Nebuchadnezzar was an instrument in the hand of God to accomplish His divine will concerning the nations. 

Just as God had previously warned the nations of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon; He would warn the cities of Egypt. He specifically mentions Migdol, Memphis and Tahpanhes. These happened to be major cities in Egypt and are the same cities to which the refugees from Judah had fled.

They went on to Egypt because they refused to obey the Lord, and came to Tahpanhes. – Jeremiah 43:7 NLT

The Lord spoke to Jeremiah concerning all the Judeans who were living in the land of Egypt, those in Migdol, Tahpanhes, Memphis, and in the region of southern Egypt. – Jeremiah 44:1 NLT

Once again, these prophecies were intended as a warning to the people of Judah more than they. were for the Egyptians. Jeremiah would have shared these pronouncements from God with his own people as a reminder that their disobedience was going to have consequences. They had run away to Egypt against the will of God. They had placed their faith in a foreign land rather than listening to the words of Yahweh. And God had already warned them what was coming.

“Because of this, the Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, ‘I am determined to bring disaster on you, even to the point of destroying all the Judeans here. I will see to it that all the Judean remnant that was determined to go and live in the land of Egypt will be destroyed. Here in the land of Egypt they will fall in battle or perish from starvation. People of every class will die in war or from starvation. They will become an object of horror and ridicule, an example of those who have been cursed and that people use in pronouncing a curse. I will punish those who live in the land of Egypt with war, starvation, and disease just as I punished Jerusalem.’” – Jeremiah 44:11-13 NLT

But the people had no intention of returning to the land of Judah. They were stubborn and refused to heed Jeremiah’s warning. So now, God was making it all official. He was predicting the actual events that would bring about their judgment and Egypt’s fall. And God indicates that the many gods of Egypt would be helpless and hopeless in the days ahead.

Why are your mighty ones face down?
    They do not stand
    because the Lord thrust them down… – Jeremiah 46:15 ESV

They would be exposed for what they were: lifeless, powerless fabrications of men’s minds. They were not gods at all and therefore, they would be no help at all in the day of trouble. Egypt would experience the very same fate that Judah had. Their great cities would fall. Their people would die as a result of starvation or by the sword. Their troops would flee before the Babylonians. And eventually, thousands of the Egyptians would taken back to Babylon as slaves. Even the mercenary troops that Egypt had hired to assist them would turn and run like fattened calves. Their lives would be offered like sacrifices before the Lord of Hosts.

The description is one of utter defeat and devastation. The great cities of Egypt would be looted of all treasure and then burned to the ground. Its once formidable army would fall like a house of cards. The many gods of Egypt would prove useless, becoming little more than booty for the Babylonians to haul off when they returned home. Even the forests of Egypt would be cut down to make the siege engines used to destroy the walls or its cities. Everything would be laid waste. And the people of Judah would find that their chosen place of refuge was anything but that. They had run from Judah because they feared the wrath of Nebuchadnezzar. But God had told them that if they stayed in Judah, He would have protected them. It would have gone well for them. But they had chosen to ignore God’s promises. They had made the fateful decision to seek refuge somewhere else. And now, they would pay the price for the disobedience and lack of faith in God.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Life or Death.

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When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate—Ebed-melech went from the king’s house and said to the king, “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.” Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, “Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. Then they drew Jeremiah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and received him at the third entrance of the temple of the Lord. The king said to Jeremiah, “I will ask you a question; hide nothing from me.” Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I tell you, will you not surely put me to death? And if I give you counsel, you will not listen to me.” Then King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As the Lord lives, who made our souls, I will not put you to death or deliver you into the hand of these men who seek your life.”

Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you will surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live. But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.” King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Judeans who have deserted to the Chaldeans, lest I be handed over to them and they deal cruelly with me.” Jeremiah said, “You shall not be given to them. Obey now the voice of the Lord in what I say to you, and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared.” – Jeremiah 38:7-20 ESV

Jeremiah is sunk in the mud at the bottom of an empty cistern. He had been placed there by a group of officials from Zedekiah’s court who had become fed up with his constant calls for the people of Judah to surrender to the Babylonians or die. What is interesting in this story is the pathetic lack of leadership on the part of Zedekiah. When his court officials had shown up demanding that he do something about Jeremiah, he had simply responded, ““Do as you like. I can’t stop you” (Jeremiah 38:5 NLT). Now, another one of his court officials appears before him, pleading that he spare the life of Jeremiah, who will surely die if the king doesn’t intervene. Once again, Zedekiah responds, “Take thirty of my men with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies” (Jeremiah 38:9 NLT). It would seem that Zedekiah’s leadership abilities were directly effected by whoever was in his presence at the time. His decision to release Jeremiah was not because he had any kind of respect or love for the man. He simply didn’t know what to do. He was frustrated and scared. His capital was surrounded by Babylonian troops who had been laying siege to the city for years now. Yes, they had recently left in order to deal with the Egyptians, but they would be back. He knew this situation was far from over. And he also knew that Jeremiah was causing all kinds of trouble in the city because of his constant prophesying about the coming fall of Judah. Zedekiah was a man without a clue as to what to do. He just wanted it all to go away. He wanted Jeremiah to tell him some good news. So, once the prophet had been released, Zedekiah sent for him.

King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and received him at the third entrance of the temple of the Lord. – Jeremiah 38:14 ESV

The specific reference to “the third entrance of the temple” was probably intended to convey that this was a secret meeting. Zedekiah didn’t want his other court officials to know he had released Jeremiah or that he was having a meeting with him. But once Jeremiah arrived, Zedekiah stated his intent:

“I want to ask you something,” the king said. “And don’t try to hide the truth.” – Jeremiah 38:14 NLT

I find this statement from the king a bit interesting. Since when had Jeremiah ever NOT told the truth or attempted to hide anything from the king? He wasn’t in the habit of sugarcoating anything and he wasn’t the kind of man who tended to hide the truth. So, Jeremiah responded, “If I tell you the truth, you will kill me. And if I give you advice, you won’t listen to me anyway” (Jeremiah 38:15 NLT). Jeremiah knew the king well. He was well aware that what Zedekiah wanted to hear from him was not the truth, but a message that painted the future of Judah and his kingdom in a positive light. He wanted good news. And Zedekiah made a promise to Jeremiah that he wouldn’t kill him or turn him back over to the court officials. He just needed answers and, preferably, positive ones. Jeremiah anticipated what it was that Zedekiah was going to ask him, so before the king could pose his question, he said:

“This is what the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you surrender to the Babylonian officers, you and your family will live, and the city will not be burned down. But if you refuse to surrender, you will not escape! This city will be handed over to the Babylonians, and they will burn it to the ground.’” – Jeremiah 38:17-18 NLT

Same song, second verse. Actually, it was the first verse all over again. Jeremiah simply picked up where he had left off before he had been thrown in the cistern. His time in the mud at the bottom of the cistern had not changed his mind or convinced him to stop delivering the message God had given him. Yes, he was standing before the most powerful man in the kingdom, who had full authority to spare him or demand  his death, but Jeremiah answered to a great authority: God Almighty. So, he told Zedekiah what God had said, not what the king wanted to hear. He spoke the truth. Even if it meant he would have to die for doing so.

And Zedekiah expressed his greatest fear.

“But I am afraid to surrender,” the king said, “for the Babylonians may hand me over to the Judeans who have defected to them. And who knows what they will do to me!” – Jeremiah 38:19

He feared his own people more than he did the king of Babylon. He was afraid that those citizens of Jerusalem and Judah who had already surrendered to the Babylonians would hold him personally responsible for the fall of their nation. They would pour our their frustration and anger on him for the devastating state of affairs in Judah. And the thought of what they would do to him petrified Zedekiah. So, Jeremiah assured him that all would be well, if he would just do what God commanded and surrender to the Babylonians. God would protect him. Yes, he would lose his crown and his kingdom. But he would keep his life. All he had to do was obey God. The very same message Jeremiah had delivered to the common people of Jerusalem applied to the highest man in the land as well. No special favors. No special treatment. Just surrender. Simply submit to God’s will.

Obedience brings blessing. That doesn’t mean the blessing is always in the form of deliverance from life’s problems or release from the consequences of our sinful actions. God was offering the choice between life and death. That was the message He had delivered to the king and the people before:

“Tell all the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: Take your choice of life or death! Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die from war, famine, or disease, but those who go out and surrender to the Babylonians will live. Their reward will be life” – Jeremiah 21:8-9 NLT

Obedience would bring life. Yes, it would also entail captivity in Babylon, but that captivity would be marked by God’s protection because it would be within His will. But to choose to reject God’s will would result in death. All Zedekiah had to do was obey God and submit to His will. Which brings us back to Ebed-Melech, the Ethiopian. This man was a foreigner, a non-Jew, but he served in the court of the king. And according to the passage, he showed more faith than any of the other court officials or even the king himself. And in the very next chapter, God has Jeremiah give this man, whose name is never mentioned again in Scripture, a personal message of assurance.

Now the Lord had spoken to Jeremiah while he was still confined in the courtyard of the guardhouse, “Go and tell Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, ‘The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, “I will carry out against this city what I promised. It will mean disaster and not good fortune for it. When that disaster happens, you will be there to see it. But I will rescue you when it happens. I, the Lord, affirm it! You will not be handed over to those whom you fear. I will certainly save you. You will not fall victim to violence. You will escape with your life because you trust in me. I, the Lord, affirm it!”’” – Jeremiah 39:15-18 NLT

Ebed-Melech would see the fall of Jerusalem. He would be an eye-witness observer of all that God had predicted. But rather than dying because he remained in the city – against God’s expressed will, Ebed-Melech would be spared. God would rescue him. God would protect him. While everyone else in the city died at the edge of the sword, Ebed-Melech would escape with his life. All because he had placed his trust in God. How? By speaking up for the prophet of God. In essence, Ebed-Melech had protected the truth of God by rescuing the prophet of God. He had taken a great risk by going against the wishes of his fellow officials. He had chosen to swim upstream, against the cultural current, and speak up for the God. And his faith was going to be rewarded.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson≠≠

Welfare, A Future, and Hope.

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These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord.

“For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

“Because you have said, ‘The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon,’ thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your kinsmen who did not go out with you into exile: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, behold, I am sending on them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs that are so rotten they cannot be eaten. I will pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them, because they did not pay attention to my words, declares the Lord, that I persistently sent to you by my servants the prophets, but you would not listen, declares the Lord.’ Hear the word of the Lord, all you exiles whom I sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying a lie to you in my name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall strike them down before your eyes. Because of them this curse shall be used by all the exiles from Judah in Babylon: “The Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire,” because they have done an outrageous thing in Israel, they have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and they have spoken in my name lying words that I did not command them. I am the one who knows, and I am witness, declares the Lord.’” – Jeremiah 29:1-23 ESV

Jeremiah was in Jerusalem, where he remained with a contingent of the people who had been left behind by King Nebuchadnezzar when he defeated the city in 597 B.C. and took more than 10,000 of its inhabitants captive to Babylon, including the king, Jeconiah (2 Kings 24:10-17). Jeconiah, also known as Jehoachin, had surrendered to Nebuchadnezzar when the Babylonians had laid siege to the city. After being deposed and deported to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, Jehoachin was replaced as king by his uncle, Mattaniah, who became a vassal to Nebuchadnezzar and had his name changed to Zedekiah. He would prove to be the last king to sit on the throne of David in Judah. At least for a very long time.

Those who had been deported to Babylon have been out of sight and out of mind up until this point in the book of Jeremiah. All the focus has been on those who remained behind. Jeremiah has continued his assignment as God’s messenger, delivering His call to repentance to the people who found themselves still living in the land of Judah, but surrounded by Babylonian troops. God had warned them to submit to the Babylonians as if they were submitting to Him. If they did, they would survive. If they didn’t, they would face death by sword or famine. Now, God turns His attention to the captives. He has not forgotten them. And in His omniscience, He knows exactly what they have been up to during their brief time in exile. So, God has Jeremiah write a letter containing a message for those who found themselves suffering God’s judgment as captives in Babylon.

“Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.” – Jeremiah 29:5-7 NLT

When you think about it, this is a somewhat perplexing message. The people who received it would have probably been a bit confused by it. Essentially, God was telling them to make the best of a what appeared to be a bad situation. I am sure they looked at their circumstances in Babylon and saw nothing good about it at all. They were living like refugees in a strange land. They were relegated to living in a restricted area near the Kabar canal. They weren’t even considered second-class citizens by the Babylonians. They were little more than slaves, with no rights or privileges. And here was God telling them to build homes, plant gardens, marry, have babies, and do everything they could do to help make their new home prosperous and successful. Essentially, God was telling them to settle down for the long-haul. There wasn’t going to be any quick reprieve or divine deliverance. In fact, God lets them know that exactly how long they will remain in the land of Babylon.

“You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again.” – Jeremiah 29:10 NLT

Seventy years. Seven decades. Long enough for a whole new generation to be born and raised in captivity. Based on the average life span in those days, most of those who were taken captive would probably end up dying in Babylon. It would be their sons and daughters who would end up returning after the 70 years was up. That’s why God commanded them to have children and to give their sons and daughters in marriage. Life was to go on, because God had plans for them. Very specific plans.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11 NLT

Again, this message had to have come across as a bit odd. How in the world could 70 years of captivity be good? But God had a long-term perspective. He was focused on the future. He knew the outcome and saw the Babylonian captivity as nothing more than a blip on the radar screen of eternity. If you recall, God had told Abraham that His descendants would be slaves in Egypt for 400 years, but then He would rescue them and return them to the land He had promised to give Abraham. And it all happened just as God had said.

Then the Lord said to Abram, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth. (As for you, you will die in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.) After four generations your descendants will return here to this land.” – Genesis 15:13-16 NLT

Once again, God was providing insight into future events and encouraging His people that He had their future covered. What appeared to be an unmitigated disaster was actually part of God’s sovereign plan for their lives. God tells them that when the 70 years us up, He will act.

“In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.” – Jeremiah 29:12-14 NLT

What is interesting about God’s promise is that while it seems to be tied to the actions of the people of Judah who are living as exiles in Babylon. He says, “If you will look for me wholeheartedly…”. But according to the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, the people never really did look for God. They never really called out to God. In fact, the book of Ezra opens up with the words:

In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to fulfill the Lord’s message spoken through Jeremiah, the Lord stirred the mind of King Cyrus of Persia. – Ezra 1:1 NLT

God moved the heart of a pagan king to issue a decree authorizing the return of the people of Judah to their land and to rebuild the city of Jerusalem and the temple. Not only that, He was going to make sure they had enough funds to pay for their trip and to cover the costs of construction.

The Lord God of heaven has … has instructed me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Anyone from his people among you (may his God be with him!) may go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and may build the temple of the Lord God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem. Anyone who survives in any of those places where he is a resident foreigner must be helped by his neighbors with silver, gold, equipment, and animals, along with voluntary offerings for the temple of God which is in Jerusalem.” – Ezra 1:2-4 NLT

This was a God-thing. There is no indication that the people called out to God. There are no signs of repentance on their part. In fact, it is more likely that the new generation of Israelites living in Babylon had become quite acclimated to their new surroundings, even adopting the gods of Babylon as their own. But God kept His word. He fulfilled what He had promised to do. After 70 years was up, the people were able to return to the land of Judah.

But before that could happen, God was going to deal with those who remained behind. He had warned them that they must submit to the yoke of Babylon. If they did, they would prosper. If they didn’t, they would suffer the consequences. And under King Zedekiah’s lousy leadership, the people of Judah who remained behind would refuse to bow before Nebuchadnezzar, essentially refusing to submit to God’s will for them. So, in 588 B.C., after 11 years of siege, the Babylonians sacked Jerusalem and completely destroyed the temple of God. Zedekiah was captured and forced to watch the execution of his sons before having his eyes gouged out. The walls of Jerusalem were destroyed. The homes within the walls were burned. Everything of value was taken as plunder. And the people scattered to the four winds, leaving the once great city of David deserted. And it would remain so until the remnant returned to restore and repopulate the city and rebuild the temple of God.

God was going to start over. A new generation would occupy the land. But God’s plans for their welfare were far from over. It would not be until His Son came to earth as the Messiah that the full extend of His promise was fulfilled. And it will not be until Jesus returns at His Second Coming that God’s final plans for the people of Israel are fully complete. His plans are focused on the future. His will is not yet complete. The outcome of His plans for Israel has yet to happen, but it will. Because He has promised.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Yet I Will Rejoice.

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Though the fig tree should not blossom,
    nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
    and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
    and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength;
    he makes my feet like the deer’s;
    he makes me tread on my high places.

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. – Habakkuk 3:17-19 ESV

Things don’t always turn out like we expect or desire. The circumstances of life have a way of showing up in surprising forms, both good and bad. Difficulties can appear suddenly and stay long past their expiration date. These are all truths we know from experience. They are part of the reality of life on this planet. They come with having to lie in a fallen world, mired by sin and under God’s curse and condemnation. But the one thing we tend to forget is that the very same God has provided a way for men and women like us, to escape the long-term effects of the curse and be exonerated from the just condemnation of God. God sent His own Son. He sent a Savior. And those who place their faith in that Savior, believing that He came, He died and that He rose again, are provided with the assurance that their sins are forgiven and their future is secure. They are guaranteed abundant life here and now, and eternal life to come. And it is that promise on which they are to hope as they endure the pain and suffering that comes in this life. Salvation does not provide us with escape from the difficulties of life. It is not some kind of spiritual immunization, inoculating us from trials or suffering. But it does provide us with a new perspective, a radically different way of looking at our time on this earth. The apostle Paul puts that new perspective in words for us:

For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! – 2 Corinthians 4:17 NLT

But what about Habakkuk? What was he to put his faith in as he wrestled with the news that God was going to judge the people of Judah for their sins and send the Babylonians as the means to accomplish that task? The Messiah had not yet come. The Savior had not yet been sent to redeem mankind from its sins. And yet, Habakkuk displayed saving faith. He knew that He could trust his God. His God had promised to provide for and protect the people of Judah, and Habakkuk took God at His word.

The closing lines of Habakkuk’s prayer contain some of the most powerful statements regarding faith in God that are found in the Bible. They are spoken by a man who has boldly, and somewhat dangerously, expressed his frustration with God over what appeared to be His lack of action. The prophet was frustrated with the unrepentant nature of the people of Judah. They refused to listen to his message. They were wicked and rebellious and Habakkuk wanted to know when God was going to act. And when God told Habakkuk that He was going to send the Babylonians to enact His judgment on the people of Judah, Habakkuk had the temerity to question God’s will and wisdom. And yet, once God explained Himself and reassured Habakkuk of His unwavering faithfulness to the people of Judah, Habakkuk had a change of heart. He literally sang God’s praises. This entire last chapter of his book are a song, composed to promote the goodness and greatness of God. And nothing had changed. Habakkuk’s circumstances had not been altered one iota. The people of Judah were still in rebellion against God. The Babylonians were still on God’s divine schedule to destroy Judah and Jerusalem. But in spite of all of that, the prophet was able to say:

yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    I will take joy in the God of my salvation – Habakkuk 3:18 ESV

And Habakkuk wasn’t talking in a future tense. The rejoicing he mentioned wasn’t some kind of post-salvation joy that would show up once God had destroyed the Babylonians and put everything back the way it was supposed to be. No, Habakkuk was talking in the present tense. He qualifies his statement by saying:

Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
    and there are no grapes on the vines;
even though the olive crop fails,
    and the fields lie empty and barren;
even though the flocks die in the fields,
    and the cattle barns are empty,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
    I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! – Habakkuk 3:17-18a NLT

Do you catch what he is saying? In spire of the circumstances, the negative circumstances, of life, Habakkuk was going to rejoice in the Lord. He was going to praise the God of his salvation. Before the fact. That is the essence of faith. The apostle Paul provides us with one of the most succinct definitions or descriptions of faith found in the Bible: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 ESV). Faith shows up in the form of assurance or certainty in a good outcome, long before the outcome is clear. It is a conviction regarding events that have not taken place. It is a trust in God, a reliance upon His promises and a confident assurance in His goodness. Once again, the apostle Paul gives us some insight into what true faith looks like.

Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. – Romans 8:24-25 ESV

Habakkuk had hope in God, and he was willing to wait for God’s deliverance with confident patience. Even is the figs failed to show up or the vines were bare of fruit, he would keep trusting. If they ran out of olive oil or experienced a drought because of a lack of crops, he would keep patiently waiting. Why? He tells us:

The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
    He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
    able to tread upon the heights. – Habakkuk 3:19 NLT
God would be his strength. His faith in God would give him the energy to endure whatever came his way. His trust in the goodness of God would provide him with the strength he needed to walk the paths of life with confidence and sure-footed stability. He knew God would not let him down. The Babylonians were coming. God had assured it. But Habakkuk was not worried. He knew God was in control and that He had promised to restore His people and remove the Babylonians. The days ahead were going to be difficult and full of unpleasant experiences, but Habakkuk was able to say, “yet I will rejoice in the Lord!” What a timely reminder for those of us who are Christ-followers, as we wait for our Savior to return. We too, live in difficult days. We are surrounded by those who would love nothing more than our destruction. The world hates us. The enemy is out to destroy us. And yet, we can rejoice in the Lord. We can have an assurance of things hoped for and a conviction of things not yet see. All because we trust in God.

 

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson