In the final years leading up to the final downfall of Judah, the people of Jerusalem looked to Egypt for help. They knew that they could not hold out against the might of the Babylonian armies, so they put their hope in Egypt. This was the last insult to God who was constantly telling them that he would carry them through disaster to ultimately fulfil his promises to them. But they were used to trusting in political powers over God and this is what they turned to in their time of trial. God had warned them all along though that Egypt was not going to be reliable. Egypt would let them down and God himself would oversee the downfall of Egypt. We are so quick to trust in earthly institutions and powers before God. There are times therefore when God allows those earthly crutches to splinter and break underneath us. It might be an investment, it might be a business, it might be a new position or opportunity or anything that raises our hopes for a better and more secure life. There is nothing wrong with these things in themselves but, if we make these the foundation of our hope, they effectively take the place of God. God wants to save us from false hopes. He will therefore allow our false hopes to be dashed to shift us onto the right foundation. Live prudently but do not hope in your prudential strategies. If your hope is misdirected, may God mercifully dash that hope. For it would be far worse to live successfully without him.
Reflect on what you are putting your hope in.
Read Ezekiel 29
