God
Rules The Nations
“Therefore thus says
the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of
Egypt
to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil
it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army” (Ezek 29:19).
In the news, we
hear of changing political fortunes, as well as unrest and uncertainty in many
nations. We need more faith to remember that God is still on His heavenly throne
overseeing the rise and fall of nations.
In Ezekiel’s text,
God makes reference to the thirteen sieze of Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar, king of
Babylon (585-572 BC).
“Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre; every
head was made bald and every shoulder was rubbed bare. But he and his army had
no wages from Tyre for the labor that he had performed against it" (Ezek.
29:18). The Babylonian king was God’s agent in punishing Tyre for
their pride and greed, which partially fulfilled Ezekiel’s prior prophecy of God
bringing “many nations” against Tyre (cf. Ezek 26:1-3, 28:2). The mainland city
of Tyre was eventually destroyed by the Babylonians but they shipped their
wealth to the safety of an offshore island (later years captured by Alexander
the Great). So, Nebuchadnezzar had no spoils from Tyre to pay his soldiers or
compensate him for doing God’s work of judgment.
"I have given
him the land of Egypt for his labor which he performed, because they acted for
Me," declares the Lord GOD” (Ezek. 29:20).
God took note of this inequity of coming up empty against Tyre. In appreciation
and just compensation for the Babylonians’ work, God gave Nebuchadnezzar the
land of Egypt, which also was judged by God for their pride (Ezek 29:3-9). God
rules in the nations still today!
In the time of national
political campaigns in the United States, we should remember the words of
Benjamin Franklin from 1787 at the Constitutional Convention in an appeal for
prayer to God to begin their deliberations, which had become contentious:
“We have not hitherto
once thought of humbly applying to the Father of lights to illuminate our
understandings…. The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this
truth- that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to
the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without
his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that ‘except the
Lord build the House they labour in vain that build it.’ I firmly believe this;
and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this
political building no better than the Builders of Babel.”
This is the background of
U.S. Congress beginning each session with prayer to God.
We need to
remember God’s sovereign words to Ezekiel that He is in ultimate control of the
fate of nations, whether they prosper or fall. He has a greater plan of
redemption that transcends whatever the latest political headlines are. We can
cease fretting and “recognize that
the Most High is
the ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes” (Dan.
4:25).
wfwalton@juno.com
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