DCLM Daily Manna Friday 10 November 2023
TOPIC: Inadequate Defence
TEXT: Isaiah 22:1-10 (KJV)
22 The burden of the valley of vision. What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops?
2 Thou that art full of stirs, a tumultuous city, joyous city: thy slain men are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle.
3 All thy rulers are fled together, they are bound by the archers: all that are found in thee are bound together, which have fled from far.
4 Therefore said I, Look away from me; I will weep bitterly, labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people.
5 For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains.
6 And Elam bare the quiver with chariots of men and horsemen, and Kir uncovered the shield.
7 And it shall come to pass, that thy choicest valleys shall be full of chariots, and the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.
8 And he discovered the covering of Judah, and thou didst look in that day to the armour of the house of the forest.
9 Ye have seen also the breaches of the city of David, that they are many: and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool.
10 And ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall.
KEY VERSE
“Ye have seen also the breaches of the city of David, that they are many: and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool.”
(Isaiah 22:9)
DCLM Daily Manna Friday 10 November 2023 MESSAGE
January 30, 2021 marked the first anniversary of the declaration by the World Health Organisation (WHO) of COVID-19 as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). Thus far, the world has been no match for SARS-CoV-2, with about seven hundred million cases and nearly seven million deaths. The United States is home to most of the world’s best hospitals, yet it was among the world’s poorest performers in addressing the pandemic, with more than one million deaths as at the end of 2022.
The best of man’s efforts pale away in the face of devastating crises. The text highlights Israel’s inadequate and feeble efforts at defending Jerusalem and other cities against the rampaging armies of the Chaldeans. They relied on the armour house of the forest of Lebanon, which King Solomon built (1 Kings 7:2-5).
READ DCLM Daily Manna Thursday 9 November 2023 – Faith Versus Fear
They used a great amount of cedar wood from Lebanon for the pillars, beams and roofing material. They numbered the houses in Jerusalem, fortified the defensive walls and channelled the water of the old pool into the city, but did not look to God, their Maker for help.
They failed woefully, as Judah and Israel were carried away captives. Man’s best defences can prove inadequate during times of crisis. Just like the best hospitals could not save us during the COVID-19 pandemic, relying on our human efforts and relegating God to the background will always prove inadequate and fatal.
Countries in the West who are economically buoyant are more drawn away from God than the poor third world countries. Africa, with her poor medical facilities, was predicted to become a graveyard during the pandemic. The poor people prayed and looked up to God, and they fared better. This does not suggest that we should just pray and refuse to put security measures in place to take care of ourselves. But we need to put more trust in God, on whose hands our lives depend. Prayer and faith in God have no alternatives.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Our help is in God.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lamentations 4-5
