Rudy Ross and I have produced hundreds of short YouTube videos on various Bible passages. Rudy is a Jewish follower and lover of Jesus. In one of our recent videos Rudy expressed his opinion that Israel’s alliance with the USA is similar to the trust she placed in Egypt in Isaiah’s time.
That may not be a popular opinion, given the message of Isaiah to his beloved nation. However, the role of a prophet is not to be popular, but to declare God’s warning to His beloved people.
Isaiah devoted 50% of his book to call the people back to faith in God. The nation had devolved into idol worship and dependence on alliances. In this chapter, Isaiah warned the people against trusting alliances instead of God.
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help
and who rely on horses,
who trust in chariots because they are many
and in horsemen because they are very strong,
but do not look to the Holy One of Israel
or consult the Lord! (Isaiah 31:1)
In 700 BC, a chariot was the equivalent to a cruise missile. Israel was afraid of an invasion from the Assyrians. God sent His prophet to the king with an assurance that God would protect them.
Rather than trusting God, they took a large amount of wealth to Egypt, seeking to secure their help against a powerful enemy.
The last phrase of verse 1 highlights their error. They chose to overlook the fact that God established the nation through a miraculous exodus from Egypt and God guided the nation in the conquest of the land. But now they refused to ask His guidance.
The Difference Between Then and Now
One of the challenges of comparing ancient Israel with today’s environment is determining how to correlate Israel as a government with genuine faith in God. The same is true, as we align the USA government with faith in Jesus Christ.
There probably are faithful followers of Yahweh and Jesus in both governments, but it would be mistaken to assume that either government is led by Jewish or Christian principles.
These governments, like all governments, are part of the world’s system. The world’s system is one of the three enemies of God’s purposes: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
Jesus said this about the world’s system: “If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18).
John’s counsel to his readers was to not set our affection on and trust in the system of this world.
Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world, for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world (1 John 2:15-16).
Here’s a question that should be seriously considered by followers of the Lord. How do we apply Isaiah’s message to governments that are part of the world’s system? Can we expect systems that oppose God’s purposes to somehow follow His directions?
I think the answer is a resounding “no.” I also think that is the fallacy of any kind of religious nationalism. Whether it is Jewish, Christian, or Islamic nationalism, the end-product is the same. Alignment with the world’s system puts us in “bed” with forces that oppose God.
Followers of Jesus should be very careful to form an alliance with the world’s system, given who undergirds it.
We know that we are God’s children and that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one (1 John 5:19).
If it is wrong to assume that governments will genuinely trust God and His guidance, what can followers of the Lord do? The best answer I have found is to pray the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) for what is taking place in the world.
God gave us this prayer, and He knows best how to answer it. He knows better how to apply this prayer to the world than anyone else.
God’s Call to Repentance
We can’t point a long, bony finger at governments without looking at our pride and rebellion. We may chafe at Isaiah’s message, but we do well to ask the Lord how it applies to us.
Turn back to him whom you have deeply betrayed, O people of Israel. For on that day all of you shall throw away your idols of silver and idols of gold, which your hands have sinfully made for you (Isaiah 31:6-7).
Let’s ask the Lord to what extent we have betrayed Him.
Let’s take a long look at the idols we may serve. Richard Foster lists three American idols in his book, Money, Power, and Sex. How do these influence us, and how can we remove them from our lives?
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 