+DEV+ Last Resort

Date: November 23, 2009 11:01 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Last Resort

Last Resort

“Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” (Isaiah 30:18)
Scripture Focus: Isaiah 30:1-18

Judah was in trouble. Sennacherib of Assyria was intent on crushing the nation. His army had swept through the land, taking cities, gathering spoil and captives. Only Jerusalem was left.

When King Hezekiah refused to admit defeat, Sennacherib waited outside the walled city to starve the people into submission. In time, Hezekiah paid Sennacherib off by stripping his city, including the temple, of much of its riches.

Sennacherib returned to Assyria with his spoil and captives, but Hezekiah feared another attack. He sent a secret delegation to Egypt, begging for an army to be sent to Judah in the event of Sennacherib’s return.

Hezekiah’s negotiations were not so secret. God knew, and sent the prophet Isaiah with a strong warning. Trouble awaited them because they had looked to Egypt as their last resort and did not look to God for help. Security was not in an alliance with Egypt, but “in repentance and rest.” Their strength lay “in quietness and trust” (vs. 15).

Insight: God has a prescription for times of trouble: repentance and rest, quietness and trust. If we follow it, we will experience His graciousness and compassion.

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