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Deuteronomy 7 (ESV)
17 “If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I. How can I dispossess them?’ 18 you shall not be afraid of them but you shall remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt, 19 the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, by which the Lord your God brought you out. So will the Lord your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid. 20 Moreover, the Lord your God will send hornets among them, until those who are left and hide themselves from you are destroyed. 21 You shall not be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God. 22 The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you. 23 But the Lord your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion, until they are destroyed. 24 And he will give their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name perish from under heaven. No one shall be able to stand against you until you have destroyed them. 25 The carved images of their gods you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the Lord your God. 26 And you shall not bring an abominable thing into your house and become devoted to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest and abhor it, for it is devoted to destruction.
REFLECTION:
“Your God will give them over to you.” The people of Israel are about to enter the land and go to war against its inhabitants. They will win great battles, but when they do, they must realize that the victory is won not by their power, but because God goes before them. They need to respond by worshiping the Lord alone and not idols.
God commanded them to burn up idol images, and do not covet the silver and gold on them to prevent from being ensnared by it. Today we have the tendency to think that things such as money and political power are the key to success, but the Bible requires us to think otherwise. Whatever successes the idols of money and power bring are short lived and unimportant in eternity.
PRAYER:
Lord, remind me not to be afraid when I face difficulties and challenges. Help me to remember what you have done, those great trials, the miraculous signs and wonders that I saw with my eyes. Help me to rely on your mighty hands and outstretched arms trusting that the Lord will bring victory to me over all challenges. (vv18-19)
