20:1
The Israelites were going to be displacing peoples, and there would be many battles to fought. They now receive instructions on going to war. The starting point was that their confidence should be in the Lord. They would see armies that were bigger and stronger than theirs. The natural reaction would be to be afraid, but they were not to fear. Why, because the Lord was with them, the Lord who had brought them out of Egypt. God’s bringing them out of Egypt demonstrated two things. One was His power, He overcame the Egyptian army, who were many times stronger than Israel. Secondly, His care for Israel.
20:2-4
Next the priest was to address the army before they went into battle, not the general, but the priest. His first task was to encourage them not to be afraid or faint-hearted, not to panic nor give into fear. Why? Because the Lord was with them to give them victory. Their confidence was to be in the Lord. There is a crucial lesson here for all of us to learn. Our trust is to be in the Lord, not in ourselves or our skills or resources. But note also that they still had to fight. Trusting in the Lord does not mean that we do nothing, rather it is a matter of how we do things.
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