Day By Day - Isaiah 31
By Darryl Flaherty
Opening Thoughts:
The last chapter that I wrote about, Chapter 23, was regarding God calling on the people of Tyre to repent and concerning the destruction of that nation for following its own achievements instead of following God.
Here in Chapter 31, we have Israel looking to go its own way and team up with Egypt instead of repenting and following God.
“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help …”. Egypt’s armies looked like the strong defence that Israel needed against the Assyrians, and the Egyptians were willing to help. But God had called Israel to depend exclusively on Him, so that He could demonstrate His power and faithfulness to the world. And so, Isaiah prophesied, as God’s people refused to rely on Him alone. Egypt and Israel would stumble and fall together.
“Yet He too is wise and can bring disaster …”. Sometimes God allows us to lean on our idols until they crumble so that we will know that He alone can deliver us, and He alone is worthy of our praise.
Every person needs help at different times in their life. Finding the needed help is not always the easiest thing to do. People look for someone who can help them in the best way possible. The Israelites were looking to Egypt for help.
When a situation comes up in your life, where you need help, the best thing you can do is immediately stop and go to God for help. Ask Him for assistance. He can guide you to the right person for help or He can supernaturally take care of the situation Himself.
There are three things we can learn from the 9 verses of Chapter 31.
Point 1: Don’t trust in ungodly things.
The problem with trusting in Egypt was simply that God was not in it. God had actually made a specific command for kings that they were not to cause the people to return to Egypt.
Deuteronomy 17:16: "The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.”
Point 2: Human help is not always wrong.
After reading Chapter 31, you might think that God doesn’t want us to ever be helped by another person. But I don’t think that is true, many times we receive help by someone God has put in our life.
The point to understand is that you need to turn to God first and accept his guidance.
Point 3: Sometimes God wants to help you all by Himself.
Though there are going to be times when God will help you through another person there are also going to be times when God wants to help you all by Himself.
When the nation of Israel had been in Egypt for four hundred years, and they cried out to God to get them out of their slavery, who delivered them? It wasn’t Moses. It was all God.
Final Thoughts:
Who has a better chance of helping you: God – who is in absolute control and made everything? Or the people and things of this world – that are temporary and can fail?
Don’t go down to Egypt for help. Seek out the One who can really help you. Seek out God first in your life for every situation, whether large or small. He can and will help you.
Opening Thoughts:
The last chapter that I wrote about, Chapter 23, was regarding God calling on the people of Tyre to repent and concerning the destruction of that nation for following its own achievements instead of following God.
Here in Chapter 31, we have Israel looking to go its own way and team up with Egypt instead of repenting and following God.
“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help …”. Egypt’s armies looked like the strong defence that Israel needed against the Assyrians, and the Egyptians were willing to help. But God had called Israel to depend exclusively on Him, so that He could demonstrate His power and faithfulness to the world. And so, Isaiah prophesied, as God’s people refused to rely on Him alone. Egypt and Israel would stumble and fall together.
“Yet He too is wise and can bring disaster …”. Sometimes God allows us to lean on our idols until they crumble so that we will know that He alone can deliver us, and He alone is worthy of our praise.
Every person needs help at different times in their life. Finding the needed help is not always the easiest thing to do. People look for someone who can help them in the best way possible. The Israelites were looking to Egypt for help.
When a situation comes up in your life, where you need help, the best thing you can do is immediately stop and go to God for help. Ask Him for assistance. He can guide you to the right person for help or He can supernaturally take care of the situation Himself.
There are three things we can learn from the 9 verses of Chapter 31.
Point 1: Don’t trust in ungodly things.
The problem with trusting in Egypt was simply that God was not in it. God had actually made a specific command for kings that they were not to cause the people to return to Egypt.
Deuteronomy 17:16: "The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.”
Point 2: Human help is not always wrong.
After reading Chapter 31, you might think that God doesn’t want us to ever be helped by another person. But I don’t think that is true, many times we receive help by someone God has put in our life.
The point to understand is that you need to turn to God first and accept his guidance.
Point 3: Sometimes God wants to help you all by Himself.
Though there are going to be times when God will help you through another person there are also going to be times when God wants to help you all by Himself.
When the nation of Israel had been in Egypt for four hundred years, and they cried out to God to get them out of their slavery, who delivered them? It wasn’t Moses. It was all God.
Final Thoughts:
Who has a better chance of helping you: God – who is in absolute control and made everything? Or the people and things of this world – that are temporary and can fail?
Don’t go down to Egypt for help. Seek out the One who can really help you. Seek out God first in your life for every situation, whether large or small. He can and will help you.
Posted in Isaiah