ESOCS Devotional 23 January 2025 – Unholy Alliance
MEMORY VERSE: ”Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help.” Isaiah 31:1
TEXT: ISAIAH 31:1–END
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help,
And rely on 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!
2 Yet He also is wise and will bring disaster,
And will not call back His words,
But will arise against the house of evildoers,
And against the help of those who work iniquity.
3 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 fall,
And he who is helped will fall down;
They all will perish together.
4 For thus the Lord has spoken to me:
“As a lion roars,
And a young lion over his prey
(When a multitude of shepherds is summoned against him,
He will not be afraid of their voice
Nor be disturbed by their noise),
So the Lord of hosts will come down
To fight for Mount Zion and for its hill.
5 Like birds flying about,
So will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem.
Defending, He will also deliver it;
Passing over, He will preserve it.”
6 Return to Him against whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted. 7 For in that day every man shall throw away his idols of silver and his idols of gold—sin, which your own hands have made for yourselves.
8 “Then Assyria shall fall by a sword not of man,
And a sword not of mankind shall devour him.
But he shall flee from the sword,
And his young men shall become forced labor.
9 He shall cross over to his stronghold for fear,
And his princes shall be afraid of the banner,”
Says the Lord,
Whose fire is in Zion
And whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
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Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help. Egypt is used in Scripture as a symbol of all foreign worldly powers. It represented carnal force – “trusting in chariots, horses, and horsemen, because they are very strong.” “Looking,” as the same verse says, “to them,” and not looking unto the Holy One of Israel; the unholy alliance, which the Jewish people formed with Egypt. God had promised to be their Protector; He had also prohibited alliances with heathen nations (Exod. 23:32; Deuteronomy 7:2). This alliance with Egypt was a violation of God’s command. This unholy alliance is an old sin. They could see and feel the horses and chariots of Egypt. They allowed their senses to be their sovereigns, instead of making them their servants. Has not this been the ruin of the race? Fleshly lusts “war against the soul.” History is crowded with examples. Eve in Eden, Esau, the Israelites in the wilderness and David.
This unholy alliance is marked by peculiar features: (1) It was a wretched choice – “Egypt.” What good thing had Egypt ever done for them? Not one. Yet, they chose Egypt in preference to God. (2) They were influenced by sensuous motives. They were carried away by the strength of the horses and the beauty of the chariots of Egypt. (3) It led them to reject God.
This unholy alliance incurred severe punishment. “Woe” and Sin lead to punishment. The safety of a nation does not consist in the strength of her army, nor in the extent of her commerce but in her loyalty to God (Prov. 14:34; Isa. 60:12).
This unholy alliance is COMMON IN THE PRESENT DAY and is formed: (a) When relief is looked for from wrong sources in the day of trouble. God is a refuge and helper to all true souls in trouble who trust in Him. Common, it is for many in the day of trouble to enter into a league with sin, shrine, and false altars, and make a covenant with death! A woe follows such, and sooner or later will overtake them. (b) When happiness is sought in wrong paths. True happiness is obtained when our will is brought into harmony with God’s will. Many look for it in other directions, e.g., the miser, the sensuous, the ambitious, the worldly. (c) When salvation is expected in any other way than through Christ. (d) When unworthy means are employed to spread the Gospel.
True loyalty to God will bring safety, happiness and heaven at last. Horses may be strong, numerous, and swift; but they shall die and be forgotten. Chariots shall become lighter than dust; but they who do the will of God abide forever. Some trust in chariots – Ps. 20:7
CHALLENGES
- What is your attitude at the peak of your trial moments?
PRAYER POINT
- Lord, help me to always seek, rely and resort to you, and not merely to consult. Amen.
FURTHER READING: Isaiah 32:1-end; Matthew 15:1-31
ESOCS Devotional 23 January 2025
