Useless Alliances
As the world descends into chaos, men and nations seek to make alliances for a sense of security. Smaller, less powerful nations seek treaties with the U.S. for protection against aggressors. An example of this is the more recent AUKUS security alliance. AUKUS is a security partnership between Australia, the UK and the U.S. (Interestingly these are the brothers Ephraim and Manasseh trying to help each other.) It is an attempt to uphold peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region and to defend against an increasingly aggressive China.
We could say that NATO is built on a similar foundation: Less powerful nations seeking protection from larger aggressor nations.
According to prophecy, we will see in the future the wholesale building of alliances in the face of a rising beast power. When the king of the north comes against the king of the south, nations to the north and the east will join together in the face of this threat. A number of two hundred million is referenced.
When men reject God, they are left to look to themselves and each other in the face of aggression. That is true of this time now and will be more so into the future.
“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who trust in horses, who trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are very strong, but who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord” (Isaiah 31:1).
What can we draw from this as a spiritual perspective?
Firstly, Israel has demonstrated a strong tendency to desire the security of Egypt. When confronted by a strong and powerful foe, they quickly desired the former security they had in Egypt. “Who walk to go down to Egypt, and have not asked My advice, to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt” (Isaiah 30:2).
Secondly, since we have been bought by Christ’s sacrifice and belong to God, we must learn to trust Him in all things. Faith is the hope we have in God without seeing any physical evidence (Hebrews 11:1). Human alliances will fail. The protection and guidance we will need in the future will only come from one source.
“Now the Egyptians are men and not God; and their horses are flesh, and not spirit. When the Lord stretches out His hand, both he who helps will fail, and he who is helped will fall down; they will all perish together” (Isaiah 31:3).
Passover and the accompanying Days of Unleavened Bread show us where our dependency lies.
Christ said prior to His death that His people would be sanctified by God’s truth. We are told, “Therefore let us keep the Feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:8).
Hold fast to that sincerity and truth. In Christ we are made free – free to leave dependency in Egypt and to trust in God’s truth.
Brian Orchard
