“And the inhabitants of this coastland will say in that day, ‘Behold, this is what has happened to those in whom we hoped and to whom we fled for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria! And we, how shall we escape?’” (Isaiah 20:6, ESV)
Today, we as a nation seem to be on the threshold of a decision that can have far-reaching repercussions. There is a movement to do things such as remove the motto “In God We Trust” from our currency, to remove “one nation under God from the “Pledge of Allegiance,” etc. Those who agree with this movement, as well as those who are indifferent to it should ask a simple question. Why did our predecessors put these things in place? Why do we see the “Ten Commandments” displayed in the Supreme Court? I believe that our predecessors understood something that we are losing, that God is sovereign over the affairs of the nation and that the nation whose God is the Lord is blessed (Psalm 33:12). To trust in anything but God is a foolish proposition.
The background of this verse is this. Judah felt threatened by Assyria, and in an effort to seek security they sought an alliance with Egypt and Cush. You might think that this would make sense in that the might of these two powers would give them security. However, this was a major problem for Judah. Isaiah presented a prophecy to the nation, a rather unique one.
“Then the Lord said, “As my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Cush, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptian captives and the Cushite exiles, both the young and the old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks uncovered, the nakedness of Egypt.” (Isaiah 20:3–4, ESV)
The Lord tells him to remove his outer garment and sandals and walk around for three years. It was an object lesson picturing what would happen to Egypt and Cush. The nation of Assyria would conquer Egypt and Cush, stripping them bare and leading them off as captives. The fulfillment of this prophecy was in 712BC.
Yet what was the major point? You might think that is was for Judah to avoid making an alliance with these two nations and this is partly correct. However, it is not the big message. The big message was that Judah trusted in the ways of man rather than the Lord their God. They were trusting in a human alliance rather than God’s providence.
How often do we as individuals, as a church, and as a nation trust in the ways of man rather than the Lord. Are we not guilty of the same? I believe that we are. Many of our decisions and guiding principles are from the world rather than from the Lord. We need to consider the Lord in what we are doing, in particular as we look to the future. We must trust Him rather than allegiances with the faithless ways of the world. We must trust in the Lord with a whole heart and thus, follow His ways.
Renewing the Heart 